ALL _ Please Vote Tuesday, November 5th

NYC Public Advocate, Queens District Attorney, Brooklyn District 45 NYC Councilmember Races & Changes to NYC Charter to be Decided

November 4, 2019 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Government & Politics / Gotham Buzz NYC.

The polling booths will be open from 6 am to 9 pm Tuesday, November 5, 2019.

To find your poll location click on the graphic above.

Once on the website, input your address, and then click the icon to get the results of the search.

PLEASE BE ADVISED that as of Sunday evening, the first poll site shown was the one used for EARLY VOTING, which at this point has ended, so scroll down to be sure you are going to the correct Poll site on Election Day.

More information about the races and charter changes coming Monday afternoon.

 

I. NYC Charter Revisions on Ballot November 2019

The NYC Charter was drafted and enacted in 1897 - 1898 as part of the consolidation of large swaths of the outer boroughs within the New York City limits. According to Wikipedia, in 1989 the NYC Charter underwent significant revisions, after its mandate was challenged in court, and the powers of the New York City Board of Estimate were given back to the NYC Mayor and City Council. On the ballot this election are five proposals to change the NYC Charter which include the following: 1) Special Elections, 2) Civilian Complaint Review Board, 3) Ethics & Government, 4) City Budget and 5) Land Use. Please note that I am using the Non-Partisan Voters Guide [since 1989] as the source with which I have outlined the proposals below.

1. The Special Elections change would eliminate run offs in special elections by allowing voters to rank the candidates in order of preference. The purpose of this would be to enable a candidate to win, in an unclear race of top choices, by re-allocating the votes of the candidates receiving the lowest number of votes to their second choice. This process would be repeated until only two candidates remained, at which time the one with the most votes would be declared a winner.

Editor's Comment. This seems complicated and thus subject to error or malfeasance. And it's hard to see whether this would play out fairly in reality.

 

2. The Civilian Complaint Review Board members would increase from the current 13 to 15. Currently eight members are directly appointed by the Mayor - including three of whom are nominated by the NYPD Commissioner - and the other five members are appointed by the City Council, but subject to the Mayor's approval.

The change would make the City Council appointees direct and hence no longer subject to Mayoral approval. And the two new members would be appointed by: 1) an agreement between the Mayor and the City Council Speaker, and this appointee would serve as the CCRB Chairperson, and 2) the Public Advocate.

FYI. The Civilian Complaint Review Board or CCRB investigates civilian complaints regarding members of the NYPD.

 

3. The Ethics & Government change would replace two of the members appointed by the Mayor to the Conflicts of Interest Board with appointees selected by the Public Advocate and the NYC Comptroller. Require that the NYC Corporation Counsel be subject to approval by the NYC Council. Have the Director of the Minority & Women Owned Business Enterprise program report directly to the Mayor and supported in an NYC Mayor's office.

And change the rules governing interactions by former City elected officials and senior appointed officials with NYC City government agencies by lengthening the 'no-appearance zone' from one to two years.

Editor's Comment. Be advised that the devil is in the details, which I don't have the time / resource to research more fully, specifically the wording of what's replacing what.

 

4. The City Budget change proposal would allow the city to establish a rainy day fund, set minimum budgets for the Public Advocate and Borough Presidents, and some specifics regarding when the Mayor must submit non-property tax revenue projections and budget modifications.

Editor's Comment. Guaranteeing taxing authority / budgets to government officials, regardless of the circumstances / need, would seem to me to be ill-advised. Make them pitch the funds based on needs, and when required, money can be borrowed.

 

5. The Land Use change proposal would require that the Department of City Planning transmit a detailed project summary to the Borough President, the Borough Board, and the Community Board affected by the project, and to post the project to its website, at least 30 days before the application is certified for public review.

The proposal also increases the time allowed for public review of ULURP [Uniform Land Use Review Procedures] from 60 to 90 days for those certified in June and from 60 to 75 days for those applications submitted in the first half of July.

Editor's General Comment regarding proposals. The #2 and #5 proposals seem pretty straightforward and seem to be improvements. The #1 proposal seems complicated and therefore subject to trouble, and the #4 proposal seems ill-advised because it's ensuring funding without requiring ongoing discussion / need for it. The #3 proposal seems like an improvement, but with this one the devil is in the details, which I don't have time to properly research.

 

The nation's various founding / charter documents are essentially a public contract we have with each other as citizens of the same nation, state and / or city. These documents articulate how we are to interact with one another in order to avoid chaos or the personalization of power that becomes manifest in authoritarian states. This is the beauty of the rule of law, which provides for equal treatment under the law and due process. I think too often we who have these freedoms, take them for granted, in much the same way as we take for granted things like good health.

Why so often is it that only after we lose these precious gifts, that we learn their true value?

 

II. Three Races: NYC Public Advocate, Queens District Attorney & City Council District 45 Brooklyn

NYC Public Advocate – Current Public Advocate Jumaane Williams replaced Letitia James in a Feb / March 2019 election because James was elected to the NYS Attorney General position in November of 2018. Williams is competing against Republican NYC Councilmember Joseph Borelli and Libertarian Devin Balkin.

Queens District Attorney – This is an open position because former Queens DA Richard Brown retired / died earlier this year. Queens Borough President, Democrat Melinda Katz who narrowly defeated Tiffany Caban in the June primary, is vying for the spot with NYPD Police Officer, Republican Joseph Murray.

NYC Councilmember for Brooklyn District 45 – This is an open position which was vacated by Jumaane Williams, following his win as the NYC Public Advocate. Farah Louis defeated seven other candidates, in the June election earlier this year. She will run against Republican Anthony Beckford and Libertarian David Fite.

Thank you for taking the time to keep the eternal vigilance that Jefferson said was the "price of democracy" and for working to inform yourself, because Jefferson also said that "... people who think they can be ignorant and free, believe in something that never was and never will be ...".

May what's best, and those who are best, for the general well being of the community win.

ALL but dif fotos _ NYC Marathon Coming Through Brooklyn

New York Road Runners 49th NYC Marathon on Sunday

October 29, 2019 / Brooklyn Neighborhoods / Brooklyn Things To Do / Brooklyn BLVD NYC.

The New York Road Runners / NYRR is hosting its 49th NYC Marathon on Sunday. The NYRR was founded in 1958 and has been organizing the NYC Marathon since 1970. The proceeds from the race go toward the programs of the runner non-profit. They report that the NYRR serves 670,000 people, of which 250,000 are youth, annually.

There are plenty of festivities this week surrounding the affair. Some are held at the NYRR Run Center [NYRR headquarters] at 320 West 57th Street between 8th and 9th Avenues in Manhattan, while others are held at the NYC Marathon Pavilion in Central Park at 67th Street and Central Park West, near the Tavern on the Green in Manhattan.

The other pre-race activities [see location addresses above] include a discussion on Tuesday about the NYC Marathon Book Club from 6 - 8 pm at the NYC Marathon Pavilion. On Wednesday there's a forum of Celebrity Charity Runners who talk about why they are running at the NYC Marathon Pavilion from 7 - 8 pm. On Thursday evening between 6 and 7 pm the NYRR presents the awards for the NYRR Hall of Fame inductees at the NYC Marathon Pavilion. On Friday at the NYRR Run Center there's an NYRR Running History Tour which runs from 10 - 11.30 am.

The pre-race festivities culminate the Saturday evening before the race, when there's an early dinner [3.30 - 8.30 pm] for the runners at the NYC Marathon Pavilion that is prepared by the chefs from Tavern on the Green. They call it the Marathon Eve Dinner. It has a sort of holiday ring to it.

NYC Marathon Times, Route & Statistics to Beat

Statistics 2018. According to the NYRR.org website, in 2018 there were 52,813 runners, from 129 countries, their average run time was 4.40 [hours.minutes] and they raised $40 million for charity. This year there are a number of primarily TV game show celebrities running to raise money for charity.

According to Wikipedia, in 2018 records for participation were broken, yet again, with 30,669 men and 22,143 women participating. The fastest runs times were approximately 2.05 [hours.minutes] for men and 2.20 [hours.minutes] for women.

NYC Marathon Organized at Fort Wadsworth on Staten Island

As you can imagine, organizing the 52,000 plus runners in the NYC Marathon, is an annual logistics feat. The NYRR has organized the race into four Waves. Each Wave begins at a different time. Within each Wave there are three Start Times which are color coded green, orange and blue. In addition to three different start times for each wave, there are six different Corrals, A through F, where runners gather to be released into the race during their wave and start time.

NYC Marathon Start Times 2019

The NYC Marathon begins at 8.30 am at Fort Wadsworth on Staten Island. From there over 52,000 runners departed last year, and the race continues to grow in popularity. The first group to begin the race are in the wheelchair division, followed by the handcyclists. These two groups depart between 8.30 am and 8.52 am.

The next group departs at 9.10 am and it comprises the professional women competing for the title. They are followed a half hour later, at 9.40 am, by the professional men. It is at this time [9.40 am] that the first wave kicks in, with its three start times. The second wave begins at 10.10 am, the third wave begins at 10.35 am and the fourth and final wave begins at 11 am.

NYC Marathon Best Guess Viewing Times

The 16 mile mark of the 29 mile NYC Marathon is at the Queensboro Bridge. That's a bit more than halfway. If you divide the average run time of 4 hours and 40 minutes, to get 2 hours and 20 minutes, you can figure out - depending on which wave / start time your loved ones are in, roughly when they'll be at the halfway mark. And then you can add to that time if you're viewing in Manhattan, or subtract from that time if your viewing in Brooklyn, or be there at the start time if you're on Staten Island. For the Bronx adding three hours to their start time should give a good proximation of when they'll be coming through Mott Haven.

NYC Marathon Route 2019

The NYC Marathon had originally circumvented Central Park, but it quickly outgrew that locale.

Staten Island NYC Marathon Route. The route used today has been in place for a long time, possibly decades. It starts at Fort Wadsworth on Staten Island, crossing the Verrazzano Bridge.

Brooklyn NYC Marathon Route. The NYC Marathon travels along 4th Avenue through most of southern Brooklyn, then taking a short turn eastward on Lafayette in Downtown Brooklyn, before resuming the northern trek along Bedford Avenue through Williamsburg into Greenpoint, where the course jumps onto Manhattan Avenue at McCarren Park.

Queens NYC Marathon Route. The next step is across the Pulaski Bridge into Long Island City Queens, where the NYC Marathon zigs west to Vernon Blvd, marches north along Vernon Blvd, and then 44th Drive and 21st Street before crossing the Queensboro Bridge.

Manhattan NYC Marathon Route. In Manhattan the NYC Marathon travels north along First Avenue.

Bronx NYC Marathon Route. The NYC Marathon route traverses the Willis Avenue Bridge into the Port Morris and then Mott Haven neighborhoods of southern Bronx. The NYC Marathon then heads west along 135th Street to 138th Street in Mott Haven and turns south heading back through Port Morris, over the Madison Avenue Bridge to Manhattan.

Manhattan NYC Marathon Route. In Manhattan the NYC Marathon travels south along 5th Avenue and into Central Park at 125th Street coming down inside the park to end at the NYC Marathon Pavilion.

Whew. I'm plum tired out just cataloguing the route, let alone running it : )

** LINK. Here's a link to the NYC Marathon route map. Enjoy.

Brooklyn Halloween Parties - Brooklyn Halloween Restaurants - Brooklyn NYC Brooklyn Halloween Parties 2019 Halloween Parties in Brooklyn Heights, Park Slope & Other Neighborhoods in Brooklyn October 28, 2019 / Brooklyn Neighborhoods NYC / Brooklyn Restaurants / Bronx BLVD NYC. Halloween occurs on a Thursday this year. The Brooklyn Halloween party celebrations begin as early as Friday, October 25th running through the weekend, with some also on Halloween day itself. Halloween is one big costume party, where the theatrical side of people, is given a small opening. Halloween provides people the opportunity to create and play roles they have wanted to play, that the day-to-day keeps submerged. Is it their Doctor side or their Jekyll side - or something uncategorizable? In the photo at right are NYC Halloween partyers in an earlier year. Professional actors are paid to assume and perform roles, but on Halloween it's an all-volunteer, unpaid, theatrical free-for-all ... but that very chaos of creativity is what also makes it so much fun. Click here to read more about our round up of Brooklyn Halloween parties - Brooklyn Halloween restaurants.

*Columbus Day Weekend Things To Do

There are Columbus Day Parades in All Boros Except Staten Island, but ...

October 11, 2019 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Things To Do / Gotham Buzz NYC.

Staten Island has an Italian Festival at Mount Loretto - see Staten Island street fairs for details. The following are the specifics for the Brooklyn Columbus Day Parade.

• Saturday, October 12, 2019 from 1 pm to 2 / 3 or 4 pm - 38th Annual Columbus Day Parade. Begins at 61st Street and 18th Avenue following a 10.30 am Mass at St. Athanasius Church at 2154 61st Street in Bensonhurst / Mapleton. The parade ends at Benson Avenue where a street fair / festival runs from 4 - 6 pm along Benson Avenue between 18th Avenue and 19th Street. Brooklyn street fairs in Bensonhurst.

Click here for other street fairs in Brooklyn over the Columbus Day Weekend or this link for things to do Columbus Day Weekend in BK.

Week Beginning 10.14.19 - Columbus Day Holiday & Democrats Debate

* Columbus Day, is celebrated in recognition of Christopher Columbus daring journey across the Atlantic Ocean in 1498 whereon he discovered the lands that would eventually be named America.

* On Tuesday, October 15th the fourth Democratic Debate will occur in Westerville, Ohio beginning at 8 pm on CNN. It will be the first time the candidates will be on one stage, as over a half dozen of them didn't make the cut for this one. The candidates making the cut are: Joseph Biden, Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Cory Booker, Amy Klobuchar, Andrew Yang, Kamala Harris, Julian Castro, Pete Buttigieg, Tom Steyer, Tulsi Gabbard and Beto O’Rourke.

Brooklyn Columbus Day Things To Do - Brooklyn Columbus Day Weekend Events in Brooklyn NYC Things To Do Brooklyn Columbus Day Weekend 2019 Brooklyn Columbus Day Weekend Events in Brooklyn NYC October 7, 2019 / Brooklyn Neighborhoods NYC / Brooklyn BLVD. This report contains a listing of some of the things to do in the neighborhoods of Brooklyn including art museums, films & theater venues, live music / comedy & dance venues, sports social events, classes, and restaurant reviews [TBD] for Brooklyn NYC. More Columbus Day events coming on Friday of this weekend. The photo at right shows the entrance to the Greenwood Cemetery in Brooklyn. The historic cemetery hosts a number of events in commemoration of its historic location [the Battle of Brooklyn which is also called the Battle of Long Island] as well as commemorating events related to some of its famous deceased residents. Click here to view the Things To Do In Brooklyn NYC this Columbus Day Weekend.

Empire State of Mind at Global Citizen Concert in Central Park

Thousands Came Together for the Global Citizen Concert in Central Park Saturday Night

October 1, 2019 / UES & UWS Neighborhoods NYC / Manhattan Things To Do / Manhattan Buzz NYC.

I attended the Global Citizens Concert in Central Park Saturday night. It was a beautiful evening and thousands had come to enjoy the music and performances of famous musicians and groups including Queens, Alicia Keys, H.E.R., Pharrell Williams, John Batiste & Stay Human, Carole King and emcees like Hugh Jackman. And all for a good cause, as Global Citizen seeks to support positive change in society for all people on the planet.

Snug Harbor Fence Show on Staten Island

69th Annual Art Show Organized by the Staten Island Museum

October 1, 2019 / Randall Manor Neighborhood Staten Island / Things to do on Staten Island / Staten Buzz NYC.

I attended the 69th Annual Snug Harbor Fence Show on Staten Island on Saturday. The show included about 150 exhibiting artists, primarily from Staten Island, but also neighboring NYC boroughs and New Jersey. There were food and beverage vendors, an accomplished jazz group - the Musical Chairs Chamber Ensemble - as well as plenty of interesting artworks that ranged from ceramics, to clothing and jewelry, to all sorts of art on canvass and other materials. The crowd the show attracted was also an eclectic group of art lovers, art exhibitors and curious Staten Islanders [it's free admission]. See video to take in a couple of minutes of the ambiance of the show.

Casa Belvedere and the Festa & Motori D'Italia

9th Annual Festa & Motori D'Italia Keeps the Engine Running on All Cylinders

September 23, 2019 / Grymes Hill Neighborhood Staten Island / Things to do on Staten Island / Staten Buzz NYC.

I attended the Festa & Motori D'Italia at the Italian Cultural Foundation at Casa Belvedere on Staten Island. The following video captures most of what I experienced - save for the delicious aromas floating in the air.

Greta Thunberg at Climate Strike in Battery Park NYC 2019

Tens of Thousands Showed for the Climate Strike - NBC Estimated 60,000

September 20, 2019 / Downtown NYC / Manhattan Buzz NYC.

I attended the Climate Strike in Battery Park Friday late afternoon. It was a beautiful day and thousands had shown up to rally support for changing how we live in order to avert the disaster of irreparably destroying the ecosystem which supports life on the planet. Swedish teen activist Greta Thunberg was there and spoke at the rally. The video below provides views of the crowd, some of their signs, a poetry performance, a musical performance and some of Greta's remarks. Stay tuned next week as the United Nations meets and Greta visits the U.N. to implore them to take action.

Having Made the Greatest Sacrifice, May They Rest in Peace

September 11, 2019 / Downtown NYC / Manhattan Buzz NYC.

U.S. Open

Things To Do in NYC This Weekend

Labor Day Parade, Gracie Square Art Show, Washington Square Outdoor Art Exhibit, Century Bike Ride, Feast of St Markella Astoria, Italian Festival in Ridgewood, Ferragosto Fest, Central American Independence Day Parade & Festival, Last Weekend for Swimming & U.S. Open Ends Sunday

September 6, 2019 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Things To Do / Gotham Buzz NYC.

Weather. The Temperature highs will be around 80 and the lows will be in the mid 60's all weekend. Precipitation. There's a 50% chance of less than 1/4 inch of rain Friday night and then clear the rest of the weekend. Winds will be around 10 - 15 mph all weekend. The Humidity will be 80% Friday and in the mid 50% range for the rest of the weekend. Click for NYC Weather.

Thursday through Sunday, September 5 - 8, 2019 from 5 - 10 pm Thurs / 5 - 11 pm Fri & Sat / 1 - 10 pm Sun - Hellenic Orthodox Traditionalist Church of America [St Markella] celebrates patron feast day with traditional Greek food and unique arts and crafts. Along 22-68 26th Street between 22nd & 23rd Avenues in Astoria.

Thursday - Sunday, September 5 - 8, 2019 from 12 noon - 10 pm & Sun until 9 pm - Fresh Pond Road - The ITALIAN FESTIVAL is back in full swing - After years of curtailment this street fair has won back the full four days. It even went on hiatus over traffic in 2017. Along Fresh Pond Road between Palmetto and Menahan Street. This is a big real Italian themed fair with great food, rides for kids and plenty of shopping. Organized by the Ridgewood Social Club. Brooklyn St fairs in Ridgewood organized by the Federazione Italo-Americana di Brooklyn and Queens.

Saturday, September 7, 2019 from 10 am - 5 pm - Annual AFL-CIO Labor Day Parade - Marches up along 5th Avenue beginning at 44th Street and ending at 67th Street. Parades in Midtown / UES Manhattan.

Saturday & Sunday, September 7 & 8, 2019 from 10 am - 5 pm - Gracie Square Art Show - Along East End Avenue from East 84th to East 88th Street [art].

Saturday & Sunday, September 7 & 8, 2019 from 12 noon to 6 pm - The Washington Square Outdoor Art Exhibit in the Village runs along University Place from West Third Street to East 13th Street [art].

On Sunday there's the 30th & Final Century Bike Ride running through all boroughs beginning at 6 am and ending at 6 pm, including a rest stop in Astoria Park and maybe in LIC [need to confirm]. The streets are not closed, but extra officers are on duty to facilitate cyclists along the way. Route lengths vary from 25 to 50 to 75 and up to 100 miles biking through all five boroughs. There's a fee [$105], the proceeds of which go to Transportation Alternatives, a non-profit biking, pedestrian and public transit advocate of NYC - www.nyccentury.org.

Sunday, September 8, 2019 from 10 am - 6 pm. Ferragosto Festival. Along Arthur Avenue between Crescent and 187th Street, and along East 186th Street between Arthur & Hughes Avenues. It's an Italian harvest celebration & celebrating 100 years of Arthur Avenue in the Belmont section of the Bronx. Bronx St Fairs in the Belmont neighborhood.x

Sunday, September 8, 2019 from 11 am - 6 pm. Central American Independence Parade. The parade begins at 12 noon at East Tremont Avenue & Southern Blvd, which is the site of the Happy Land Fire Memorial where in 1990 about 100 people lost their lives - mostly Honduran Garifuna celebrating carnival. This parade celebrates Honduran Garifuna and snakes its way down Boston Road, then Charlotte Street to Crotona Park East - ending between Crotona Avenue and Claremont Parkway. Street fairs in the Bronx neighborhood of West Farms.

The public swimming pools close for the season on the evening of Sunday, September 8th.

The U.S. Open ends at the USTA in Flushing Meadows Corona Park on Sunday. The matches continue up until then - see www.usopen.org for details and tickets, which can cost hundreds of dollars.

Week Beginning 9.9.19 - 9/11 Commemorations

Wednesday, September 11th is the 18th anniversary of the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center. There are several events to commemorate it this week, including the commemoration ceremony at the site in downtown Manhattan beginning at 8.39 am.

Things To Do in NYC Labor Day Weekend

Brazilian Day Festival, Washington Square Outdoor Art Exhibit, U.S. Open, Historic Richmond Town County Fair

* August 31, 2019 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Things To Do / Gotham Buzz NYC.

* Weather. The Temperature highs will be around 80 and the lows will be around 70 all weekend. Precipitation. There's a 25% [morning] - 50% [afternoon / evening] chance of about 1/3 inch of rain Monday. Winds will be around 10 mph all weekend. The Humidity will be 50% Friday & Saturday, rising to 60% Sunday and 70% Monday. Click for NYC Weather.

* The Washington Square Outdoor Art Exhibit runs from 12 noon - 6 pm all three days Labor Day Weekend in the Village in Manhattan.

* On Sunday the Brazilian Day Festival runs from 11 am - 6 pm along 6th Avenue going north from 42nd Street in Midtown in Manhattan.

* On Monday the West Indian American Labor Day Parade starts in Grand Army Plaza at 11 am in Prospect Heights in Brooklyn.

* The U.S. Open tennis matches at various time runs through the Labor Day Weekend in Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens.

* The Historic Richmond Town County Fair runs 12 noon to 6 pm through the Labor Day Weekend on Staten Island.

* And it's the last weekend to enjoy the Sunday Salsa Party from 1 pm - 6 pm at Orchard Beach at Pelham Bay Park in the Bronx.

Things To Do Brooklyn Labor Day Weekend - Brooklyn Events NYC Things To Do Brooklyn Labor Day Weekend 2019 August 28, 2019 / Brooklyn Neighborhoods NYC / Brooklyn BLVD. This report contains a listing of some of the things to do in the neighborhoods of Brooklyn including art exhibitions, films, theater, live music, comedy, dance, sports social events, classes, and restaurant reviews for Brooklyn NYC. Click here to view the Things To Do In Brooklyn NYC this Labor Day Weekend.

Labor Day Weekend on Staten Island NYC

Things To Do on Staten Island Over The Labor Day Weekend

August 25, 2019 / Things To Do NYC / Staten Buzz.

It's too early for a reliable weather forecast. Nonetheless you can still attend NYC street fairs in all five boroughs, go bicycling on Staten Island, play soccer & other games in Staten Island parks, go shopping on Staten Island, attend Staten Island parades, watch theater, visit the Staten Island art museums, and eat out at one of the Staten Island restaurants.

And it's all happening right here in our favorite borough - Staten Island. So take your time to sort through the days and locations and start planning your weekend.

 

Labor Day Events on Staten Island

Click here to obtain information about things to do Labor Day Weekend on Staten Island. This events calendar is updated monthly with dozens of different Staten Island fun cultural events.

Staten Island Public & Private Parks

Staten Island has one of number of public parks of which a few include swimming facilities. Click here for a listing of the Staten Island Parks including maps showing their locations along with a bit of park history. This is coming at a later date.

 

NYC Golfing on Staten Island

Staten Island has four golf courses and all of them are open this weekend. The Silver Lake Golf Course is located at 915 Victory Blvd in the northeastern section of Staten Island near the Silver Lake neighborhood. It's only short bus ride from the Staten Island Ferry Terminal in St. George. The La Tourette Golf Course is located at 1001 Richmond Hill Road near Historic Richmond Town and Lighthouse Hill neighborhoods in the center of Staten Island. The South Shore Golf Course is located at 200 Hugenot Road in the southwestern part of Staten Island in the Rossville neighborhood. It is home to the Grand Oaks Country Club. And the NYC Junior Golf Club is located at 66 Pitney Road at the southern end of Staten Island in the Woodrow neighborhood. Click here for details about Staten Island golf courses including maps and links to the operators' websites. The links are coming at a later date.

• CLICK here for things to do on Staten Island Labor Day Weekend.

ALL _ Neighborhood Policing in Queens & NYC

The NYPD Program Helps Build Trust & Stronger Community Relationships

August 28, 2019 / Long Island City Neighborhood / Queens Community Issues / Queens Buzz NYC.

Last night I attended one of the New York Police Department Neighborhood Policing programs. It was held at the Information and Technology High School on 44th Road in LIC beginning at 7 pm. The NYPD Neighborhood Policing program began in 2015 under the leadership of NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton and was rolled out under the leadership of NYPD Commissioner James O'Neill who replaced Bratton in 2016. The program became citywide in 2019.

In the photo at right are the two NYPD Police Officers in charge of the 108th Precinct Neighborhood Policing program - Jorge Ozuna and Andrew Ali.

The NYPD Neighborhood Policing program is designed to build trust and a robust two-way communication mechanism between the New York Police Department and the neighborhoods they serve. To that end the NYPD works to enable the same officers patrol the same neighborhoods at the same times / shifts in order to build a consistent rapport between the officers and the neighborhoods they serve. By building this two-way conversation about community safety and other policing issues, the NYPD becomes more aware of the concerns of neighborhood businesses and residents. Conversely, the folks living in a neighborhood develop a rapport and trust in the NYPD staff who patrol their communities, which enables the residents to collaborate with the police in ensuring community safety.

It makes perfect sense, which causes one to wonder why we're only getting to this place now.

In some of the police journals I scanned a few years back, one of the key concerns of police department professionals, was that generally the only contact / interaction that citizens had with police were largely negative. By this they meant that the police were doing their job of enforcing the laws by: issuing traffic tickets & parking tickets, making theft arrests, or arrests for drunk and disorderly behavior and as well as all sorts of other bad behavior. Thus there was a sort of distrustful relationship developed by many in the community toward the police - who were just doing their job. But for whom many had negative interactions, while few had positive interactions with the police force.

NYPD Neighborhood Policing Program

Enter the Neighborhood Policing program where the police are becoming familiar faces to whom you talk to about issues related to law enforcement within your community. And that is what the program this night was all about. In the photo to your right is a map of the 108th precinct coverage area.

The Neighborhood Policing program began with refreshments at the Information & Technology High School in LIC at 6.30 pm. At 7 pm the police officers in charge - Jorge Ozuna and Andrew Ali - provided a review of the issues discussed at the last meeting and progress made in addressing them. They also highlighted crime patterns the NYPD is seeing in the area, which in this case is the theft of motorcycles by folks driving vans, stopping and grabbing the bikes and taking off. They noted that this is a seasonal crime.

After the review of the notes and follow up from the last meeting, the community had an opportunity to raise issues related to law enforcement affecting them. At this particular meeting and some of the past two meetings [the meetings began in January of 2019] the issues included blocked bike lanes, double parking and abandoned vehicles. The Long Island City precinct, the 108th, is a generally low crime precinct encompassing Long Island City, Sunnyside and Woodside.

NYPD Precincts in Queens North & NYC

In the NYPD Queens North section, there are six precincts. They include the 108th described above, as well as Astoria which is the 114th, Jackson Heights which is the 115th, Corona which is the 110th, Flushing which is the 109th, and Glendale / Ridgewood which is the 104th. Jamaica falls into the NYPD Queens South section and is served by the 105th, 107th and 113th precincts. You can look up the precinct in any borough using the website below.

NYPD Neighborhood Policing Program - Build the Block Website

The two NYPD officers in charge of the meeting, Jorge Ozuna and Andrew Ali, told me that residents seem to like the interaction. They noted that while attendance to these quarterly events is fairly small - in this case just less than a dozen residents - as people become more aware of the program, attendance is likely to increase. Also, given that LIC, Sunnyside and Woodside are fairly low crime neighborhoods, there are fewer pressing issues to take up at these meetings.

The meetings are posted about a month or so in advance. You can find the meeting times and locations - which vary - on their website at www.buildtheblock.nyc. The site is a valuable resource as it also has all sorts of other information about the precinct.

Murdoch's NY Post Editorial on Eric Garner Daniel Pantaleo & NYPBA Patrick Lynch A Closer Look at Murdoch's NY Post Editorial on Eric Garner's Death vis a vis Officer Pantaleo A Union Busting Billionaire's Newspaper Writes an Opinion Omitting Key Facts The Post's Editorial Reminded me of the Prosecutor's Case in 'To Kill a Mockingbird' August 14, 2019 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics & Government / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC. In the 1962 film [based on the 1960 book by Harper Lee] 'To Kill a Mockingbird', attorney Atticus Finch takes up the defense of an African American, Tom Robinson, who is accused of raping a white woman in a small, rural town in Alabama. The verdict is a foregone conclusion in the Depression era deep south, but Atticus Finch does his best to defend Tom, and in doing so, finds plenty of holes in the prosecutor's case. Similarly, I also found holes in Murdoch's NY Post Editorial Board's case, which are provided below. The issue of race was an underlying issue in 'To Kill a Mockingbird', and there are many who believe there's an underlying race issue here. Murdoch's New York Post Editorial, in a Nutshell, Seems to Tell Why America, Britain & Australia are Divided By the end of August, NY Police Commissioner James O'Neill will decide whether to keep Officer Daniel Pantaleo on the New York City Police Force. The union boss of the NY Patrolmen's Benevolent Association [NYPBA], Patrick Lynch, came out strongly in favor of keeping Pantaleo on the NY police force, stating that, "He's [Pantaleo] has done nothing wrong." I've provided information taken from a number of different, generally reliable sources, down below, including a link a live video of the incident, so you can cut & paste into your browser, and see / judge for yourself. The NY Post Editorial Board should be ashamed of itself for such a shoddy, one-sided presentation of the facts used in their opinion. That the highest ranking members of one of America's largest newspapers would publish such rubbish, provides added support to the notion that the union busting billionaire who controls the paper, is a predator propagandist. All of the members of the NY Post 'Editorial Board' who didn't strongly object to this opinion should be fired and Rupert Murdoch should be asked to resign as Chairman of the Board at Newscorp. Murdoch's New York Post Cherry Picked the Facts for their Opinion Murdoch and his NY Post Editorial Board didn't sign their names to the Editorial, but rather chosed to hide behind their newspaper brand. On August 1, 2019 Murdoch's NY Post Editorial Board's opinion headline read, "The Facts Say: Do Not Fire Daniel Pantaleo". Yes, Murdoch's NY Post's CHERRY-PICKED facts might say that. But if provided a full reading of the facts, the full facts might say just the opposite. Let's start with the live video, so you can take a look for yourself, before we delve into the background information. If you want, you may cut and paste this into your browser bar to view the video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_s8JklrBSlk NYPD Officer Daniel Pantaleo was recorded on video making the arrest of Eric Garner. Eric Garner was a six foot three, 350 pound, African American who was allegedly illegally selling cigarettes on the street. It's worth noting that Garner had had a number of previous encounters with the police and that Pantaleo had previously been charged in two civil rights lawsuits. Five Key Omissions by Murdoch's New York Post Editorial Board NY POST KEY OMISSION I - Pantaleo's complaint history was not included in Murdoch's NY Post opinion, while some of Garner's history with the law was. CLICK here to read the rest of our report on the Eric Garner Death, Daniel Pantaleo's Future, NYPBA union boss Pat Lynch and Union Busting Billionaire Rupert Murdoch.

GB1491 _ The Old Fox Fakes the News _ Case Study: How Rupert Murdoch Manipulates Public Perception

For the Second Time in Two Weeks, Murdoch's Mendacious Media Appear to Hype a Low Level Incident, to Incite Public Opinion Against the Mayor

July 23, 2019 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics / New Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.

Billionaire Rupert Murdoch must still consider Mayor de Blasio as a viable contender for the Democratic nomination for president, or his propagandistic news outlets - the NY Post & Fox News - wouldn't be so stridently attempting to stir up public emotion and opinion against the Mayor, using low-level incidents to stir unrest.

 

Murdoch Seems to Hype, Inflame & Amplify 'News' Incidents to Attack the Mayor

Little more than a week ago, Murdoch's NY Post hyped and seemed to blame the power outage in West Midtown on the Mayor because the Mayor was out of town that weekend. The outage lasted a bit more than 24 hours and without any major incident. NYC had three power outages during the Bloomberg Administration and I don't recall Murdoch's NY Post calling for his fellow billionaire to be fired. See report below.

This week Murdoch's Fox 'News', with what seemed an assist from ABC 'News' [in which Murdoch became the largest shareholder this year], hyped what appeared to be a disrespectful, but essentially a low-level neighborhood policing incident - into a highly sensationalist attack on the Mayor.

Note that this report is NOT about the incident itself - which as stated appeared disrespectful - but rather about Murdoch's HYPING of a harmless neighborhood policing incident [nobody was hurt and the arrest was made without further incident] on the Fox 'News' Network, FOR THE ENTIRE NATION TO SEE - seemingly in order to manage the America's public perception of Mayor Bill de Blasio, in what appears a pre-emptive attack on the Mayor before his candidacy for president gains traction.

 

Hyping an Incident Out of Proportion - The Facts

Let's start with the incident itself. I first found the story on Murdoch's Fox ' News'. I then found it in reports by ABC [where Murdoch became the largest shareholder this year], and the NY Daily News which is controlled by the Tribune Company. Like a lot of ill-managed corporate 'news' outlets these days, oftentimes you'll find outlets blindly following the petty narratives put out by Murdoch 'news' outlets, which is in part how Murdoch controls how people in this city and in the nation view events.

There were two incidents: one in the Brownsville neighborhood of Brooklyn and one in Harlem. ABC reported that the Brownsville incident, where a couple of police were doused with a bucket of water as the temperatures soared to nearly 100 degrees, as "... officers deliberately cooling down with residents ...".

The second incident was in Harlem, where a police officer was making an arrest and was doused with water and had a plastic pail thrown at him. The NY Daily News report also includes video depicting a woman - not dressed in a police uniform - standing near an NYPD vehicle being doused with water. If one doesn't scrutinize this portion of the video, it gives the impression that the person they are dousing is an NYPD officer - which they are not.

According to the ABC report, the Brownsville incident appears to be much ado about nothing [see above quote], but that quote may possibly provide context for the Harlem incident, where the dousing appeared not welcome and the plastic pail being thrown could be interpreted as assaulting an officer, or attempting to interfere in the arrest.

The Mayor said as much when queried about it. But as noted when I began this report - this is not about the incident itself - it's about how Murdoch's deceitful media outlet appeared to hype and distort it way out of context in order to use it to manipulate people / stir unrest / channel anger at the Mayor for what appears to be billionaire Rupert Murdoch's political and propaganda for profit agenda.

 

Stop & Think for a Minute - Real News vs Fake News Like This

Nobody was injured, and there wasn't any direct interference with the arrest which was being made in a local community. The incident was managed by neighborhood police, but caught on cell phone video, and picked up by who ... one of Murdoch's mendacious media outlets.

Wouldn't it seem that with all the real crimes like murders, burglaries, rapes and other crimes going on in the U.S., that the Fox Network 'News', ABC 'News' and the NY Daily 'News' might have something more important to cover with their reporting teams?

Or is this what we get from those who have been honored with FCC television licenses? Regurgitated neighborhood videos, shown largely out of context, that we can find online ourselves?

Why does Murdoch's news outlets have FCC licenses at all? Shouldn't these broadcast licenses be awarded to someone else, if this is how people like Murdoch, who currently control them, are using the public airwaves?

I think it's time community groups start challenging Murdoch's Fox Fake News misuse of their FCC TV broadcast licenses - click the link above to view a report series we have done about Murdoch's misuse of the mass media he controls. Use this information to file a brief challenging Fox News FCC license in your community ... and I'm pretty sure if you monitor Murdoch's TV news outlets locally, you'll find abuses of the truth that will lend added support to your case.

 

The Police Benevolent Association Weighs in

The Police Benevolent Association, which is headed by Patrick Lynch, said that this was,

"... the result of the torrent of bad policies and anti-police rhetoric that has been streaming out of City Hall for years."

Again, it is necessary to put this in context.

According to Wikipedia, in 2007 Lynch was quoted as saying that the Police Benevolent Association,

"could never support former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani for any elected office."

That same Wikipedia report also states that Lynch,

"... was a huge critic of Police Commissioner Ray Kelly as well as Mayor Michael Bloomberg."

 

Murdoch Fox 'News' uses Rudy Giuliani Like an Attack Dog

Rupert Murdoch's mendacious media outlets seem to never let the facts - or lack thereof - get in the way of them telling the public what Murdoch wants the public to believe, which oftentimes seems what will best serve Murdoch's business interests - NOT the public good.

Thus Murdoch marshalled former Mayor Rudy Giuliani as the attack pundit. Murdoch befriended Giuliani with media endorsements and / or paid gigs beginning in 1989, when Murdoch's NY Post first endorsed Giuliani who was the Republican NYC mayoral candidate. During that mayoral campaign, Roger Ailes - who went on to become the Chairman and CEO of Murdoch's Fox News - was Rudy's campaign manager [Daily Beast report dated 7.21.11].

The Murdoch mendacious media never attacked Rudy Giuliani on anything during the eight years he was Mayor. Possibly because Giuliani - like Trump - treated Murdoch like royalty and used his mayoral powers to reward Murdoch's interests aka enrich him [and Murdoch appeared to return the favors - quid pro quo?] which you will see below. And when public preferences are given to the few like this, rest assured that over time it erodes the interests of the general public, which are our interests.

Thomas Jefferson said that,

"People who believe they can be ignorant and free, believe in something that never was and never will be."

So people can ignore these facts, and they can ignore examining who's feeding them the [dis]information they use to evaluate pols and policies when deciding their votes, but over time they and their progeny will pay dearly. Staying informed means that sometimes you have to put on your adult cap, and listen to some of the facts that you really don't want to hear - similar to waking up to a stock tip gone bad, a spouse that's reportedly cheating, or that your company's business model is headed for extinction. In all of these cases, it's better to look the truth squarely in the eyes, and to recalculate - and if necessary - readjust your plans.

 

Rupert & Rudy - A Marriage Full of Quid Pro Quo Profiting?

According to the Daily Beast report mentioned above [the facts of which I have also seen elsewhere], in 1995 Donna Hanover [who was Rudy Giuliani's wife at that time], was hired by Murdoch's Fox News as a reporter for an estimated three times what she'd last made. Corruption? Maybe, but it gets worse.

In 1996 Murdoch was in a battle to get his newly launched Fox News channel carried on the Time Warner cable system in NYC. Time Warner told Murdoch they didn't have any new channel openings - as Time Warner had 77 channels, all of which were taken, and 30 other content providers were already in line.

Reporter Wayne Barrett, who wrote the July 21, 2011 Daily Beast story, tells us that Murdoch's people met with the Giuliani Administration a couple dozen times in the course of two weeks. Barrett goes on to note that Giuliani then offerred Murdoch's Fox News one of NYC's TV channel slots, which a judge subsequently ruled was illegal [favoritism].

 

Not to be deterred, Giuliani, who'd been endorsed by Murdoch's NY Post twice, persisted in trying to help the billionaire media mogul. Rudy Giuliani had senatorial and presidential ambitions in the 1990's, and likely saw the value of currying favor with the billionaire propagandist. At the time Rupert Murdoch controlled one of the nation's largest newspapers [NY Post - and now also controls the Wall Street Journal, Barron's & MarketWatch], one of the nation's largest TV stations groups [Fox TV and now controls the Fox Network], and an emerging cable news channel [Fox Cable News and now controls a multitude of other cable channels].

Giuliani reportedly started making what seemed threatening statements and taking actions that hinted at threatening or at least complicating the NYC cable license renewal with Time Warner, which was only a few short years away [1998]. So Time Warner caved into the pressure levied by Murdoch's puppet / buddy pol [Rudy Giuliani], and gave Rupert Murdoch a channel on their NYC cable system.

According to a July 2011 Business Insider report, Giuliani also gave Murdoch a $20 million tax break on his Midtown Manhattan offices during Giuliani's first term. That same report also said that generous tax incentives were under consideration for Murdoch's NY Post printing plant during Giuliani's second term. It seems that Murdoch's use of his media outlets as propaganda machines, during the Giuliani Mayoralty, greatly enhanced Giuliani's electability and the profits of Murdoch's business interests.

 

Murdoch Values - The Callous O.J. Simpson Book "If I Did It"

One of the many media entities controlled by Rupert Murdoch is Harper Collins Publishing.

Rupert Murdoch and the values of the macabre? In 2006 Murdoch's media scrapped a Fox News interview with O.J. Simpson and a Harper Collins book entitled "If I Did It" by O.J. Simpson due to public outcry.

According to a November 21, 2006 report in The Guardian the book and Fox News show about the book, were cancelled due to the negative publicity surrounding the amazing insensitivity of the broadcast and book publication.

The Guardian states,

"...The victims' families were furious that Simpson was to get more publicity. "He destroyed my son and took from my family Ron's future and life. And for that I'll hate him always and find him despicable," Fred Goldman told ABC's Good Morning America programme. Nicole Brown Simpson's sister, Denise Brown, accused the publishers of "promoting the wrongdoing of criminals" and commercialising abuse."

 

Murdoch Values - Lying to get Puppet Pols into Office?

The woman spearheading the project, Judith Regan, was fired by Newscorp in 2006. Regan was also allegedly having an affair Bernard Kerik, who was the Police Commissioner during the Giuliani Mayoralty. According to a January 25, 2008 report by Reuters, there was a lawsuit filed by Regan in November of 2007 against Newscorp regarding her 2006 termination in which she claims,

" ... that a senior executive at News Corp encouraged Regan to lie to government investigators about her relationship with Bernard Kerik, the former New York police commissioner. It said the company feared damaging information about Kerik could come back to haunt his mentor, former New York Mayor Giuliani, who is now a Republican U.S. presidential candidate..."

Murdoch the mendacious? Will he do anything to put his puppets in office? Will he do anything to keep those who refuse to be his puppets from getting into office?

 

Murdoch Values - Distorting the News to Discredit a Pol who Won't Become the Propagandist's Puppet?

Why did a Low Level Neighborhood Policing Incident, Become the Front Page Story, of one of America's Largest TV Networks?

This sort of propaganda pay to play appears to be a recurring theme in Rupert Murdoch's dishonest life. He seems to use his media outlets and pundits to promote the pols from whom he seeks favors, and uses them to punish those who won't bend to his will.

It seems that Mayor Bill de Blasio is not one of those who will bend to Murdoch's will, which is why the Mayor will likely be under repeated mass media attacks by the Murdoch mendacity machine the rest of his political career.

Hence this is why a neighborhood policing incident, involving water splashes that resulted in no physical harm, has become a top national report by a Murdoch propaganda pol turned pundit [Rudy Giuliani] on a Murdoch propaganda machine outlet [Fox News].

I can all but guarantee that you'll see many more of these hyped up, distorted and deceitful reports from a multitude of Murdoch media outlets going forward - until Mayor de Blasio is out of the running for presidency - or until after de Blasio retires from the presidency in 2028.

Murdoch will mix it up, by using his vast array of different media outlets, to provide a continous stream of distorted reports, seeming to come from different sources [see prior report from a week ago in which Murdoch's NY Post blamed the Mayor for the power outage in Midtown, while this week it's Murdoch's Fox News that blames the water splashing on cops on the Mayor]. The Murdoch media strategy seems to be, to enable the public to view the multitude of very distorted 'news' accounts, at various times, by different 'news' outlets, to give the public the impression that the Mayor is wrong on so many different counts. Murdoch seems to fictionalize facts to do this.

I surmise that Murdoch's thinking is that the public will develop a negative attitude toward the Mayor [or any non-Murdoch pol] because they're receiving so many of these distorted attack narratives, based on false attributions, from so many different 'news' outlets, at so many different times. How could they be so wrong? Even though when I query these voters, they cannot marshall any facts to support their claims about how the Mayor has failed them.

But the reality is that these 'news' accounts are really the continuous whining of the angry, miserly, lonely, old billionaire who controls them all. And Murdoch is also very good at cajoling, bullying and co-opting many of the other lame-brained corporate media organizations, who oftentimes repeat the narratives that his organization creates and promotes.

Murdoch Media - Creating the News - NOT Reporting it

So in summary, it seems the Brownsville incident may have been part of the NYPD neighborhood rapport [per ABC], while the Harlem incident seemed disrespectful, but with no physical harm done.

That this became a national story on Fox Fake News and ABC 'News' is not reflective of the newsworthiness of the incident, nor of the Mayor's nor NYPD's performance, but rather of the purposeful perception management of a selfish billionaire. Rupert Murdoch seems to pursue his own for profit propaganda agenda, by discrediting pols like the Mayor who won't bend to his will, in order to enable the election of those pols who will continue enabling him, to enrich and empower his organization by plundering the public domain.

One has to wonder whether Rupert Murdoch thinks he's an Egyptian Pharoah who can take all his money and power with him into the next life. I conjecture he's gonna need help after he leaves us, based on what he's done in this life. But I'm certain that all of that money and power are not going with him - just like all of those treasures that were to accompany the pharoahs - never left this world.

So while Murdoch may not yet realize it - he is really squandering the time he has left on the planet - on something that is totally irrelevant to his future.

And no matter how much money and power Murdoch accumulates, by now he should realize that it's never going to fill the void created in his life when his father Keith Murdoch Sr. died in 1952. At that time Keith Rupert Murdoch Jr. was just 21 years old.

In the 1950's psychology and psychiatry were emerging fields, and the science of them was still in question - kind of like climate change today. So it's likely Murdoch never received the proper psychological or psychiatric care that today might help someone like him through such a huge psychological trauma, which may have been exacerbated by complications with the estate transition. Young Rupert's psychological trauma at such an early age, may explain in part why he's become the seemingly angry, callous, insatiably greedy and power hungry man that he is today.

Citizen Kane. Citizen Murdoch. Rosebud.

GB _ Billionaire Rupert Murdoch & his NY Post Order Us to Fire the Mayor

Murdoch & his NY Post Seem to Want a Puppet NANNY not a Mayor

July 14, 2019 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics / New Analysis, Opinion & Satire / Gotham Buzz NYC.

Multi-Billionaire Rupert Murdoch, the puppet master of the world's three largest English-speaking democracies, has dictated that we must remove Mayor de Blasio NOW.

Murdoch's NY Post headline was almost predictable. Mayor de Blasio was campaigning in Iowa over the weekend, and while he was away, there was a 25 hour power outage in west midtown [Saturday]. MURDOCH & his minions on the NY POST Editorial Board want the Mayor fired - like he is their nanny who left town - without tucking them in that night.

In the photo at right is multi-billionaire Rupert Murdoch who controls two [Newscorp & Fox Corp] of the six largest U.S. media companies which control about 80% of U.S. media. Murdoch also became the largest shareholder of Disney / ABC in the Spring of 2019 [which brings Murdoch's control / influence to three of the six largest media companies in the U.S.]. This huge media merger was made possible thanks to a waive through by the 'Trump Department of Justice'. Murdoch appears to have turned Australia and Britain into Murdoch-controlled banana republics, and seems well on his way to doing the same here in the United States.

I'm nearly certain the Donald, Murdoch's current nanny president, would remove Mayor de Blasio - were it in the Donald's power to do so. Since the Donald appears to have carried out so many of Murdoch's instructions since coming to office just two and a half years ago.

Trump fired all of the U.S. Attorneys in the spring of 2017, less than 24 hours after being told to do so, by Murdoch's Pinocchio Pundit Sean Hannity. The NY U.S. Attorney, Preet Bahara, was investigating charges that Murdoch's company was engaged in an illegal hacking scandal again [the first one was in Britian], along with allegations of sexual misconduct at Murdoch's company [these have plagued Murdoch's company for many years].

That same year [2017], Trump's FCC Chairman Ajit Pai proposed waiving the ownership limits on U.S. television stations, in advance of Murdoch's Fox News deal to acquire numerous TV stations from Sinclair Broadcasting in early 2018 [deal fell through].

And Trump's Department of Justice waived through Murdoch's inverted takeover of Disney / ABC whereby Murdoch became Disney / ABC's largest shareholder. Murdoch appears to be using Disney / ABC Chairman, Bob Iger, like he uses Prime Ministers and Presidents ... to do his dirty work, in exchange for funding and [media] support.

Lastly, but not insignificantly, Murdoch's 'fake news' President recognized the Syrian Golan Heights as Israeli territory. It seems no coincidence that multi-billionaire Rupert Murdoch and former Vice President Dick Cheney [were these two co-conspirators in producing the Iraqi fake weapons of mass destruction in the early 2000's?] are major stakeholders in Genie Energy, which has significant 'holdings' in the Israeli-occupied Syrian Golan Heights. The United Nations and the rest of the world still consider the Golan Heights to be Syrian territory occupied by the Israelis.

Murdoch seems to use his media to discredit, displace and replace Australian Prime Ministers [five prime ministers in a little more than five years] and British Prime Ministers [three prime ministers in a little more than three years] so he can get those nation's leaders to do what he wants.

Murdoch has a monopoly share of newspapers and the majority share of TV stations in Australia - where after decades of dictating to Australians - most of them are still ignorant of the fact that Murdoch has near monopoly control of their media, even though he is neither a resident nor citizen. And Murdoch controls two of the three most dominant newspapers in Britain and an oligarch's share of the British TV market [Murdoch would have had a majority share of the British TV market had not Comcast outbid him in 2018 - and again he is neither a resident nor citizen of Britain].

The result is that the government officials in both Australia and Britain pretty much seem to say piss off to the public good, and do what Murdoch tells them to do. And if they don't, Murdoch seems ready, willing and able to use his overwhelming share of the nation's mass media outlets to propagandistically discredit and replace them. It is in this manner that Murdoch appears to control these nations.

One has to ask how much of a democracy Australia and Britain really are, when one man has so much control over the information used by voters to make their decisions prior to casting their votes?

If Mayor de Blasio becomes the next president - Murdoch and his NY Propaganda Post would lose the coddling by their current nanny president - the Donald. This seems to explain why Murdoch appears to have used his NY Post, in a what seems a Goebbels-inspired effort, to discredit the Mayor. It appears Murdoch is hellbent on pre-emptively eliminating Mayor de Blasio as a presidential candidate even before de Blasio begins gaining traction with the American electorate.

Brooklyn Fireworks Celebrating July 4th

Brooklyn has Fireworks Displays at Coney Island and at the Brooklyn Bridge as the Macy's 4th of July Fireworks has Moved Down River

June 25, 2019 / Brooklyn Neighborhoods NYC / Brooklyn Things To Do NYC / Brooklyn Blvd NYC.

The following are the dates and locations of the legal fireworks displays in Brooklyn over the next week or so leading up to and just beyond the July 4th holiday.

It begins on Coney Island on Friday, June 28th beginning around 9.30 pm when the fireworks will be shot into the air off Coney Island. You can get a good view from the Coney Island Beach. Organized by the Coney Island Alliance. This continues on July 4th, and then Fridays such as July 5th & July 12th and into the summer.

On Wednesday, July 3rd at 9.45 pm there will be a barge of Fort Hamilton in the southern top of Brooklyn near the Verazanno Narrows Bridge. These fireworks are sponsored by Fort Hamilton.

The big event is of course on July 4th, beginning just before 9.30 pm, when the Macy's 4th of July fireworks takes to the sky. This year the fireworks have been moved south of the Brooklyn Bridge on the East River [Between Pier 17 and Manhattan Heliport], so the view from Brooklyn should be better than in prior years.

And last, but not least, are the Breezy Point fireworks in the Rockaway Inlet in Queens on July 5th beginning at 9.30 pm. The Breezy Point Co-Op is the sponsor. Folks in southeastern Brooklyn should be able to see these fireworks.

QB1196 _ Report about Katz - Lead in not included here, but kept on Bx, M, Q sites.

GB Q only _ Queens District Attorney Debate

Includes Video of Highlights from the Debate in Jamaica

June 11, 2019 / Queens Neighborhoods / Queens Politics & Government / News Analysis & Opinion / Queens Buzz NYC.

In May I had the opportunity to attend the Queens District Attorney debate at the Jamaica Performing Arts Center. It was the second event, featuring the candidates running for the Queens District Attorney's office, that I attended. This time I focused more intently how well versed each candidate was on the issues to be addressed by the person winning that position, and what qualifications, experience and vision they might bring to the office.

I have noted my first impressions below, which were gleaned while attending a forum in April, to which all candidates were invited to participate at the Jackson Heights Jewish Center. In the second debate, some of these impressions were altered and some of them were confirmed.

The photo above shows the two leading candidates [based on endorsements] running for the Queens District Attorney office - Melinda Katz and Tiffany Caban. The photo below shows the other two leading candidates running for the Queens District Attorney office - Gregory Lasak and Rory Lancman.

Tiffany Caban has, by far, received donations from more small contributors than any of the candidates. Melinda Katz leads in fundraising, with strong support from the real estate development community for which she spent years [2009 - 2013] working as a lobbyist.

Gregory Lasak and Rory Lancman have also been competitive fundraisers - but neither matching Tiffany Caban's small donor support, nor Melinda Katz's big donor support.

The following video captures about 17 minutes of highlights from the three hour long debate. I decided not to give equal time because many of the statements made were either repetitive or laden with platitudes. Thus former Justice Gregory Lasak and Public Defender Tiffany Caban received the most air time, as they provided real world anecdotes, as well as real world insights into how our criminal justice system functions and how it can be reformed.

GB Q & SB _ Have a Good Memorial Day Weekend

May 24, 2019 / Things To Do NYC / NYC Neighborhoods / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.

In the photo at right, a New York City veteran pays his respects to those who went before him. These brave men made the supreme sacrifice to preserve democracies - governments by the people, for the people, operating under rule of law in lieu of being subject to the capricious whims of reckless rulers.

That struggle for truth and justice continues to this day. But the battles are being fought on our own soil between - those who appear hellbent on destroying our Constitutional democratic institutions using mass deception and outright lies - versus those who are fighting to preserve them.

Thomas Jefferson said that "Eternal vigiliance is the price of democracy" and that "Those who believe a people can be ignorant and free - believe in something that never was and never will be."

The Founding Fathers of our nation designed our system of government so that it includes checks and balances within our governance system. These checks and balances are designed to thwart rule by commands, and to empower the governed by institutionalizing a system of law based on due process, which guarantees all people their inalienable human rights, including liberty and justice for all.

But any system on the planet can be hacked, if the hackers are given enough time. And rights, like property, can be lost or stolen - if the rights or property holder doesn't pay attention and take appropriate action when required.

Thus, we live in a time when American democratic institutions appear to be not just under siege - but in actual jeopardy - and the ultimate outcome of this continuous struggle remains unclear. So while remembering those who went before us, who fought to bravely to preserve the blessings we all enjoy, honor them by paying attention to what's going on in our own government. To do this you need to be sure you're getting the truth - all the facts - about the pols and the issues, which these days can only be done by using multiple information sources controlled by different people.

Right now mega-billionaire Rupert Murdoch controls Fox News, the Wall Street Journal, the NY Post, Barron's, Market Watch, National Geographic and this year he became the largest shareholder in Disney / ABC. It's useful to think of these media outlets, which represent about half of America's news, as being controlled by one man. And do your duty to your country, and your fellow Americans, by seeking out non-Murdoch information sources to fill in the omissions, correct the distortions and offset the amplified lies told by others that are broadcast and printed by the Murdoch-controlled information sources. It's been documented innumerable times, that Murdoch's information sources distort or corrupt the news.

Murdoch's dominant or monopolistic control of the national media in Australia and Britain appears to have turned these two nations into banana republics. For example Australia has gone through five Prime Ministers in about five years [including one former Murdoch employee who appears to have given Murdoch's company a nearly $900 million tax gift paid for by the Australian public]. And it seems that because of Murdoch's relentless push for Brexit [Murdoch is said to prefer operating in Britain as a separate nation because he can tell British Prime Ministers what to do], Britain is on its way to thrashing through three Prime Ministers in three years. One of the leading candidates for British Prime Minister, Michael Gove, is also a former Murdoch employee.

Others see the Russian or Chinese nations as the greatest threat to America, perhaps because Rupert Murdoch's grabbing for monopolistic control of our media, is stateless and more insidious. It's possible that Rupert Murdoch's self serving use of his media outlets represents an even more dangerous, hostile stateless intelligence service to our nation, than Murdoch's former fellow Australian countryman, Julian Assage, Founder of WikiLeaks, could ever even imagine.

I've documented Murdoch's history of propaganda profiteering, which he appears to have been doing in Australia, Britain and America for decades, in a multi-part series posted on this website about Rupert Murdoch and the Rise of the Propaganda Press - including Fox Fake News.

GB & SB 1492 _ NYC Mayor de Blasio Announces a Run for President

And Multi-billionaire Rupert Murdoch Attacks with a Barrage of Dimwitted Political Punditry (aka attack ads), by his Paid-for Puppet Commentators, on his Pinocchio Propaganda Machine

May 17, 2019 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics & Government / News Analysis, Opinion & Satire / Gotham Buzz NYC.

Mayor Bill de Blasio entered the race for president on Thursday and Rupert Murdoch's NY Post, Fox News and Wall Street Journal wasted no time in torrentially mocking him.

Is it because Mayor de Blasio was able to hold Murdoch's propaganda media outlets at bay, while implementing a solid record of pragmatic, Progressive reform in NYC?

 

Hog Heaven: Piggy Murdoch Lapping it up at the Trump Trough?

Multi-billionaire Rupert Murdoch appears to have been feeding heavily at his own public-to-private trough since DJT came to office two and a half years ago. The following are a few facts surrounding what I've come to think of as Murdoch's relationship to his Manchurian Candidate [Editor's Note: I encourage you to research words and cultural references used herein, if you're not familiar with them].

Trump dismissed all U.S. Attorneys including Preet Bahara who was investigating Murdoch's companies for alleged illegal hacking [they got caught doing this in Britain] and sexual harassment. Trump gave billionaires like Murdoch and their companies huge, huge tax cuts, to be paid for - not with spending cuts [which would have been honest] - but rather by stealing from America's babies and unborn babies as America's parents did not stand up for them.

Trump also appointed Ajit Pai to the top position at the FCC, reportedly at Murdoch's suggestion. Ajit then loosened the ownership rules on media companies, like Murdoch's, so that Murdoch could acquire more TV stations, adding to his already dominant share of American broadcast media.

Trump's 'Justice' Department then approved an inverted takeover of Disney / ABC by Murdoch where Murdoch cashed in handsomely, while becoming the largest shareholder of Disney / ABC stock in a deal he cut with his friend of at least a decade, Bob Iger, who reportedly wants to become the President of the United States (after Trump?).

Assuming Murdoch wrests control of Disney / ABC - the Murdoch family will control three of the six largest media companies in the United States [21st Century Fox / NewsCorp / Disney ABC] or nearly half of the market.

! Please think about the sentence above, because it's important !

 

Australia Leads Democracies into Farmer Murdoch's 'Animal Farm' and Britain & America aren't far Behind

As we've seen in Australia, it's not really a democracy if one man controls most of the information the voters use to make their decisions. This is especially true when that man appears willing to play fast and loose with the truth, in order pursue his own agendas, and to fill his own pockets.

Murdoch appears to be the one person most responsible for the election of Tony Blair, David Cameron, and re-election of Margaret Thatcher in Britain; the election of George W. Bush and Donald J. Trump in this country; and the election of numerous Australian Prime Ministers. He appears to have done this by using his media outlets as a propaganda machine, which appears to present / report the world as Murdoch wants his audience to see it, so can get the audience to vote for the candidates he wants. The candidates he seems to favor are those - who after getting elected - like Trump, appear to give him what he wants. In this fashion Murdoch seems to have been enriching and empowering himself at the expense of the very audience he keeps ignorant, for decades. In Australia one of the Prime Ministers that Murdoch 'installed' was a former Murdoch employee [Tony Abbott]. After becoming Prime Minister, the Abbott Administration failed to file follow-on court documents - which resulted in about a $900 million loss by Australian taxpayers - and a $900 million gain by Murdoch's companies.

 

Are the Iraqi Hoax Masters Back Again?

Murdoch, along with former VP Dick Cheney, appear to be two plausible co-conspirators in the phony WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION HOAX started at the beginning of this century, which resulted in the American taxpayer-funded $1 - $2 trillion Iraqi War. These two potential co-conspirators are currently partnered up and invested in Genie Energy, which is a company developing the energy rights in Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, which Trump just recognized as Israel's. Israel took military control of the Syrian Golan Heights in one of the wars of quite a while ago, and in recent years there's been a growing belief that the Syrian Golan Heights has huge oil and gas deposits.

So in comes Genie Energy, with the backing of multi-billionaire global propagandist Rupert Murdoch and former VP Dick Cheney, both of whom appear ready to use the American taxpayer again, to enrich themselves?

And now Murdoch & Cheney seem to be trying for an Iraqi War HOAX sequel by trying to get U.S. taxpayers to fund a military build up in the Middle East by manipulating neophyte President Donald J. Trump, America's greatest Deal Breaker, into going back on yet another of his campaign promises which was to put America first and to keep us out of foreign wars [Promises Made | Promises Broken]. One can surmise that Murdoch and Cheney have surrounded the Donald with their surrogates like Pompeo, Bolton and Barr, who likely goaded Trump to renege on the Iran deal cut by the Obama Administration, which has strained the two nations' relations ever since.

 

When Getting Your Information - Pay Attention to the Source - Murdoch Has Purchased a Lot of America's Trusted Media Brands

So while you're watching any of the pundits on the Murdoch-controlled media outlets like local Fox TV stations, or Fox News, or the Wall Street Journal, or Barron's, or Market Watch, or even Disney / ABC News or The View - talk glowingly about Trump or disparagingly about Mayor Bill de Blasio - take note that they all work for one man. And that man always appears to want something big for himself, generally at the public's expense, in exchange for the huge distortions provided in his media outlets' coverage. [Editor's Note: Changing The View looks like Murdoch's first Disney / ABC propaganda project, along with what appears to be ABC News omissions or diminutions of key stories].

 

Murdoch's Media Blasted de Blasio Not Because de Blasio is bad for NYC or America - as Murdoch and his Minion Mendicants Would have you to Believe - but Because de Blasio isn't Good for Murdoch

Murdoch seems to behave like a heroin addict. Murdoch will never collect enough money and never secure enough power, to satisfy his infinite insecurity, and need for both. Rupert Murdoch will likely do everything in his power to stop Mayor Bill de Blasio and people like him - which is why we've all been witness to an unending barrage of disparaging reports by the dimwitted Murdoch mendicants who want to discredit NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio's run for President before it gets off the ground.

CLICK here to read more about whether Tony Abbott stole nearly $1 billion from the Australian people for Rupert Murdoch? or read the entire series about Rupert Murdoch's Fox Fake News and his propaganda press.

Brooklyn Mothers Day Restaurants - Moms Day Restaurants in Brooklyn NYC Brooklyn Mothers Day Restaurants & Events Brooklyn Valentine's Day Restaurants in or near the Dumbo, Williamsburg, Clinton Hill, Fort Greene, Brooklyn Heights, Park Slope, Greenpoint, Bushwick, Greenwood Heights, Gowanus, Downtown Brooklyn, Sunset Park, Bayridge, Marine Park, Coney Island Neighborhoods of Brooklyn May 7, 2019 / Brooklyn Neighborhoods / Brooklyn Restaurants / Brooklyn Events & Things To Do / Brooklyn Blvd NYC. Mother's Day isn't that far away [Sunday, May 12th, 2019]. It's a good time to let your loved one know you care. Flowers, gifts and brunch or dinner are always welcome, as is any thoughtful gesture that provides some measure showing your appreciation of your mother or the mother of your children. After all, without mothers, we would all cease to be. It's best to book a restaurant reservation for Mother's Day brunch, as on Mother's Day in Brooklyn, many restaurants are full. So if you're thinking about eating out at a restaurant this Mother's Day in or near the Dumbo, Williamsburg, Clinton Hill, Fort Greene, Brooklyn Heights, Park Slope, Greenpoint, Bushwick, Greenwood Heights, Gowanus, Downtown Brooklyn, Sunset Park, Bayridge, Marine Park, Coney Island neighborhoods; it's best to do your research early, and call ahead to book Mother's Day restaurant reservations. Mother's Day History - Mothers Day Restaurants in Brooklyn The origins of Mother's Day in the United States began with the efforts by Anna Jarvis in honor of her own mother. According to Wikipedia, Anna began the campaign in 1905 - the year her mother died - and in 1910 West Virginia was the first state to adopt it as a holiday. In 1914 Woodrow Wilson made the second Sunday in May as a national holiday to honor mothers. Click this link to view a brief guide of Mother's Day restaurants in Brooklyn where you will find links to Brooklyn restaurants we've researched, visited in the past or have reviewed. The restaurants we've reviewed include a mix of high, medium and budget priced restaurants that are spread throughout the borough and offer a large variety of ethnic cuisines. Enjoy.

Staten Island Mothers Day Restaurants - Moms Day Restaurants Staten Island NYC Staten Island Mothers Day Restaurants Staten Island Mothers Day Restaurants in or near Castleton, Stapleton, Richmond Town, Great Kills, Rossville, Tompkinsville near St. George, Westerleigh & South Beach Neighborhoods of Staten Island May 7, 2019 / Staten Island Neighborhoods / Staten Island Restaurants / Staten Island Events & Things To Do / Staten Island Restaurants NYC / Staten Buzz NYC. Mother's Day isn't that far away [Sunday, May 12th, 2019]. It's a good time to let your loved one know you care. Flowers, gifts and brunch or dinner are always welcome, as is any thoughtful gesture that provides some measure showing your appreciation of your mother or the mother of your children. After all, without mothers, we would all cease to be. It's best to book a restaurant reservation for Mother's Day brunch, as on Mother's Day on Staten Island, many restaurants are full. So if you're thinking about eating out at a restaurant this Mother's Day in or near Castleton, Stapleton, Richmond Town, Great Kills, Rossville, Tompkinsville near St. George, Westerleigh & South Beach neighborhoods; it's best to do your research early, and call ahead to book Mother's Day restaurant reservations. Mother's Day History - Restaurants on Staten Island The origins of Mother's Day in the United States began with the efforts by Anna Jarvis in honor of her own mother. According to Wikipedia, Anna began the campaign in 1905 - the year her mother died - and in 1910 West Virginia was the first state to adopt it as a holiday. In 1914 Woodrow Wilson made the second Sunday in May as a national holiday to honor mothers. Click this link to view a brief guide of Mother's Day restaurants on Staten Island where you will find links to Staten Island restaurants we've researched, visited in the past or have reviewed. The restaurants we've reviewed include a mix of high, medium and budget priced restaurants that are spread throughout the borough and offer a large variety of ethnic cuisines. Enjoy.

ALL _ Congestion Pricing & the Lobbying Apparatus that Won't Take No For an Answer

Congestion Pricing Legislation was being Pushed in Albany over a Decade Ago ... so Who's Really in Charge?

March 26, 2019 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics & Government / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.

Last week I attended a Congestion Pricing Town Hall organized by Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer. Earlier in the week City Council Member Helen Rosenthal had organized one along the same lines because legislation is percolating in Albany.

Governor Cuomo appears to be itching to pass the Congestion Pricing legislation, likely so he can get his hands on more taxpayer money, while satisfying a whole host of private industry consultants and corporations. These consultants and corporations would then rake in hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars thanks to Albany. So then would they recycle a small portion of the funds into the campaigns of the folks who supported it?

These days that seems to be the campaign funding cycle - where the voters get left out because they aren't minding the store. A government of the people, by the people and for the people doesn't work if the people aren't paying attention. Jefferson said, "Those who believe they can be ignorant and free, believe in something that never was and never shall be."

 

I. Congestion Pricing is a Very Expensive Taxation Plan

Let me start by outlining what the Congestion Pricing legislation really is, versus the myriad of narratives they've used to sell this pig. While they have said it will reduce congestion, reduce carbons, increase cycling, increase safety - note that all of these claims are highly debatable. Based on the research I've done, the Congestion Pricing Plan seems quite simply to be a very, very expensive means of taxation.

In London, where they implemented Congestion Pricing over a decade ago, as of a few years ago, only about half of the revenue made its way into public transit development. The other half was used to install and operate [and god knows what else] the new infrastructure. Click here to read a prior report we did which includes lots of facts, figures and the history and effects of congestion pricing in the U.S. and Europe.

It's worth noting that London decided NOT to go forward with the second proposed phase of Congestion Pricing. And it's worth mentioning that I found a lot of 'authoritative looking' disinformation out there regarding the London results, which one can surmise was encouraged - if not funded - by those who so handsomely profit from this sort of legislation.

If the government officials in Albany are going to increase our taxes, the least they could do is make it such that the taxation revenue that is collected is 100% usable, not 50% usable.

When you take away the incremental revenue generated by the Congestion Pricing Plan, you will clearly see that it DOES NOTHING TO SOLVE THE NYC MASS TRANSIT PROBLEM and there are far less expensive / more efficient / more beneficial means of taxation.

 

II. Congestion Pricing is Burden Shifting Legislation that Aids the Rich and the Pols, While Punishing the Middle & Working Classes

The Congestion Pricing Plan is essentially a burden-shifting plan, whereby the burden of traffic congestion during rush hour, is shifted from being all car commuters' problem, to easing the burden on those who can afford to pay the new tolls, while making life more difficult for those who cannot.

So essentially Congrestion Pricing makes life harder / more expensive / more time consuming for people who are middle and working class - while making life easier for the rich folks by asking them to pay a few more dollars to get back more of their high dollar time. It's like the Trump Tax plan which shifted about $1.5 trillion from America's children and unborns, to the richest people on the planet. Life is made easier for those who already have so much, while being made more difficult for those who don't.

That seems simply un-American.

Remember, as stated above, a government of the people, by the people and for the people doesn't work if the people don't pay attention. Voters need only blame themselves if they allow the representatives they elected, to betray them, in favor of the rich consultants and corporate campaign donors, who will profit at the voters' expense.

 

III. Congestion Pricing Doesn't Solve Anything - Carbon

In one of the spin cycles, the Congestion Pricing proponents claimed that Congestion Pricing would reduce carbon emissions. And yet in a study done on time shifting pricing done in the NYC metro area showed that Congestion Pricing did little to reduce the influx of vehicular traffic. The study found that the pricing formula only shifted the volume of traffic at a given time, but did not significantly reduce traffic over the span of the day. I'll get more into some of the Congestion Pricing particulars when I post the report on Gale Brewer's Town Hall, where other / more efficient means of taxing / limiting vehicles coming into Manhattan were discussed.

 

IV. Follow the Money: Why is Congestion Pricing Still Around & Why Aren't There Any Other Alternatives Under Discussion?

Congestion Pricing has been floating around the halls of Albany, dating back to the Bloomberg Administration's push for it in 2007 and 2008. The legislation has been killed at least twice previously. Perhaps Albany will do the right thing and kill it again.

But then again, the NYT indicated that maybe the Democrats in Albany will pass Congestion Pricing this time around, because Mayor de Blasio isn't opposing it. Did the corporate lobbyists and consultants finally win de Blasio over, because it's still a bad plan.

The fact that a bad plan - Congestion Pricing - is back again, is yet another symptom of what's wrong with our society and government. What do I mean by this? I mean that this is the ONLY NYC public transit plan I've seen floating around the halls of Albany over the past decade, since I began reporting on NYC social and political issues. And the state of NYC's mass transit system is one of the biggest single issues of the time.

Congestion Pricing is one bad plan, that keeps coming back at the initiative of the private industrialists who will profit from it, while it appears that NOTHING HAS BEEN DONE at the State level to come up with a plan of their own. A plan that would have at its core serving the public good - not serving the good of a few private interests. This is what broken, inept government looks like.

Quite frankly, I could come up with a better plan to solve NYC's traffic problem than Congestion Pricing, on the back of an envelope, in an hours time.

 

The Real Solution to Traffic Congestion is Expanding Mass Transit Infrastructure

The real problem, which I pointed out in the report I first did on NYC Congestion Pricing Plan, is that the city is operating its mass transit using a system designed and built between 80 and 100 years ago. Things have changed and the system hasn't.

Building and maintaining infrastructure costs money, and unfortunately Albany with its cast of political characters, is going about addressing the problem backwards.

Albany wants to raise money first - and then figure out how it's going to spend the money later.

As any savvy investor knows, that's almost always a bad deal.

I'll post more at a later date on Gale Brewer's Town Hall on Congestion Pricing.

What's expressed above may reflect the overall sentiment [it was generally negative] expressed at the Town Hall - but the particulars above are mine.

Staten Island St Patrick's Day Bars Restaurants & Irish Pubs - Staten Island NYC Staten Island St Patrick's Day Bars, Restaurants & Irish Pubs Staten Island St Pat's Day Irish Pubs in Castleton, Stapleton, Richmond Town, Great Kills, Rossville, Tompkinsville near St. George, Westerleigh & South Beach Neighborhoods of Staten Island March 9, 2019 / Staten Island Neighborhoods / Staten Island Holiday Events / Staten Island Events & Things To Do / Staten Island Restaurants NYC / Staten Buzz NYC. St Patrick's Day is on a Sunday this year, meaning that it's going to be an extended party weekend. At a later date we'll add a bit of history of St. Patrick's Day. While St. Patrick's Day is one big party, it's important to keep in mind, that like New Years Eve, all the amateurs come out to play [it's not just the Irish who are out drinking on St. Patrick's Day]. So some measure of caution is advised and you have to be careful. Click here to read more about our round up of some of the Staten Island St Patrick's Day bars, restaurants & Irish pubs - Staten Island NYC.

Brooklyn St Patrick's Day Bars Restaurants & Irish Pubs - Brooklyn NYC Brooklyn St Patrick's Day Bars, Restaurants & Irish Pubs Brooklyn St Pat's Day Irish Pubs in or near the Dumbo, Williamsburg, Clinton Hill, Fort Greene, Brooklyn Heights, Park Slope, Greenpoint, Bushwick, Greenwood Heights, Gowanus, Downtown Brooklyn, Sunset Park, Bayridge, Marine Park, Coney Island Neighborhoods of Brooklyn March 12, 2019 / Brooklyn Neighborhoods / Brooklyn Holiday Events / Brooklyn Events & Things To Do / Brooklyn Restaurants NYC / Brooklyn Blvd NYC. St Patrick's Day is on a Sunday this year, meaning that it's going to be an extended party weekend. At a later date we'll add a bit of history of St. Patrick's Day. While St. Patrick's Day is one big party, it's important to keep in mind, that like New Years Eve, all the amateurs come out to play [it's not just the Irish who are out drinking on St. Patrick's Day]. So some measure of caution is advised and you have to be careful. Click here to read more about our round up of some of the Brooklyn St Patrick's Day bars, restaurants & Irish pubs - Brooklyn NYC.

ALL _ Jumaane Williams Wins Public Advocate Election

Williams Bests 16 Other Candidates to Take Second in Succession to Mayor

February 26, 2019 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics & Government / Gotham Buzz NYC.

Jumaane Williams appears to have won the election for Public Advocate. According to Ballotpedia, with 88% of the precincts reporting, Williams had received 120,000 or 33% of the vote.

The sole Republican, Eric Ulrich, received 70,000 votes or 19%, which was the second highest total of votes. The other Democrats included former NYC Council Speaker, Melissa Mark-Viverito, who received 40,000 or 11% of the votes, was followed by Michael Blake with 29,000 or 8%, Ydanis Rodriguez with 22,000 or 6%, Dawn Smalls with 15,000 or 4%, Rafael Espinal 12,000 or 3%, Ron Kim 11,000 or 3%, Daniel O'Donnell 11,000 or 3% and the others each had less than 10,000 votes with 88% of the precincts reporting.

Jumaane Williams is shown in the photo at right in June 2018, campaigning on the steps of the New York Public Library in Midtown Manhattan, for Lieutenant Governor. Williams lost that election in November, but quickly rebounded, winning the position for NYC Public Advocate in February of 2019.

According to a NY Times report Jumaane has eight months before he's up for election again, as this special election - to replace Tish James because she was elected NYS Attorney General - only lasts until the next regularly scheduled election. Congratulations Jumaane.

ALL

NYC Public Advocate - NYC Special Election 2019 - NYC Candidates Summaries Public Advocate NYC NYC Public Advocate Candidates in Election 2019 Melissa Mark-Viverito, Jumaane Williams, Daniel O'Donnell, Rafael Espinal, Eric Ulrich, Nomiki Konst, Ron Kim, Michael Blake & 9 Others are Running for this Office February 25, 2019 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics & Government / Gotham Buzz NYC. Tomorrow, Tuesday, February 26th, 2019 a few New Yorkers will go to the polls to select the next NYC Public Advocate. Brief NYC Public Advocate History The position was created in 1993, by renaming the office of the President of the City Council, which up until 1989, had held a seat on the New York City Board of Estimate until it was abolished that year. The Public Advocate has a relatively small budget [under $4 million per year], a small department as measured by headcount and no voting power except in the cases where a deciding vote needs to be cast in the City Council. The real power of the Public Advocate is in that person's ability to influence the conversation regarding policy priorities and urgency. Second in Line to Mayor de Blasio And with Mayor de Blasio considering a run for the presidency - while quite a long shot at this point - the Public Advocate would be next in line to succeed him. There have been only four Public Advocates since the post was created, starting with Mark Green who made a run for Mayor and lost. Betsy Gotbaum followed Green, and she was followed by Bill de Blasio who managed to use the position as a spring board to win the Mayoralty. Letitia James succeeded de Blasio and she is now the NYS Attorney General. The City Council Speaker has been the interim Public Advocate since James took office in January 2019, and will give up the post following this election. CLICK for a summary of eight leading candidates running in the NYC Public Advocate Special Election 2019. THE FULL REPORT HAS BEEN PUBLISHED - 2.26.19

ALL _ Public Advocate Election - Tuesday 2/26 - Please Vote

February 26,2019 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics & Government / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.

The New York Public Advocate election is tomorrow - Tuesday, February 26th.

The polling booths will be open from 6 am to 9 pm Tuesday.

To find your poll location click on the graphic above.

Once on the website, input your address, and then click the icon to the right of it to get the results of the search. You have to look for the super-tiny icon near the lower right corner of the screen.

Mayors SOTC = 1476 ALL

Pants on Fire = 1481 ALL but SB

The Real National Emergency: President Pinocchio's Pants are on Fire The Real National Emergency? President Pinocchio's Pants are on Fire February 19, 2019 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics & Government / Gotham Buzz NYC. News Analysis, Opinion & Satire. I stumbled upon an episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live, from January 10, 2018, about how Donald Trump has differentiated himself from all other presidents of the United States of America - as the greatest known liar of them all. Cut and paste this link for a short video of Jimmy Kimmel's documentary of Trump Telling His 2,000th Lie over a year ago - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQruDaf7bKs Real Presidential Greatness vs 'Greatest' It's important to distinguish between greatest - which compares one to another - and greatness, for which there is no comparison. Greatest is an amount or extent considerably above normal, while greatness is about having won the respect for achievements in one's field. True greatness is rarely achieved by braggadocious people, because they are too busy talking to make time to do anything truly great. Presidential Greatness. George Washington was achieved greatness by risking his life as the Commander in Chief of the colonial army during the Revolutionary War. A greatness which was made even more so, by the fact that the first president didn't try to keep / possess the title of the president beyond two terms /eight years. Abraham Lincoln, similarly risked his life, to hold the Union together, while exorcising it of the heinous institution of slavery. And Franklin Delano Roosevelt, saved democracy, capitalism and freedom, by leading the nation through the Great Depression and the Second World War. But while the Donald may not have done anything remotely deserving the moniker of greatness, over a year ago Jimmy Kimmel identifed that Trump had already become the greatest liar who ever occupied the White House. That was over a year ago, in January of 2018, and since then the Trump has continued onward with his train of lies. President Pinocchio Supported by Murdoch's Fox News Pinocchio Pundits But to be fair, Trump likely could not have come up with so many different lies to tell, without the help of multi-billionaire, global propagandist, Keith Rupert Murdoch, and his mass media mendacity machine. The Murdoch propaganda machine includes outlets like Fox News and their portfolio of Pinocchio pundits, the Wall Street Journal and the NY Post. Murdoch appears to have benefitted greatly from the Trump presidency, via 1) huge tax cuts for the wealthy, 2) Trump military action in Syria where Murdoch owns part of Genie Energy with former VP Dick Cheney and several other robber barons, 3) huge Fox News ratings wins due in part to the Donald's Crazy Town [name of a book by Bob Woodward about the Trump Administration] and last but not least 4) Department of Justice and FCC approval of Murdoch's inverted takeover of Disney / ABC which will soon enable Murdoch to take control of about half of America's broadcast news. 5 of President Pinocchio's Biggest Lies Since 7/2018 Since Kimmel's video was posted in January of 2018, Trump has continued telling many lies - including some very, very big ones. Here are five of Trump's biggest lies between July 2018 and today, including a brief analysis of the impact. CLICK here to read the rest of our report on a few of the Big Lies by Trump in the second half of 2018 and early this year: The Real National Emergency: President Pinocchio's Pants are on Fire & Pinocchio pundits Ingraham & Hannity on Murdoch's Fox Fake News.

Staten Island Valentine's Day Restaurants - Romantic Restaurants Staten Island NYC Staten Island Valentine's Day Restaurants Staten Island Valentine's Day Romantic Restaurants in or near Castleton, Stapleton, Richmond Town, Great Kills, Rossville, Tompkinsville near St. George, Westerleigh & South Beach Neighborhoods of Staten Island February 8, 2019 / Staten Island Neighborhoods / Staten Island Restaurants / Staten Island Events & Things To Do / Staten Island Restaurants NYC / Staten Buzz NYC. Valentine's Day is less than two weeks away. It's a good time to let your loved one know you care. Flowers, gifts and dinner are always welcome treats, and / or some thoughtful gesture that shows that the lady [or man] you're with, still means a lot to you. It's generally hard to make restaurant reservations on short notice at a romantic Bronx restaurant on Valentine's Day, and sometimes it's difficult to make them for the weekend preceding Valentine's Day. So if you're thinking about doing something this Valentine's Day for dinner in or around the Castleton, Stapleton, Richmond Town, Great Kills, Rossville, Tompkinsville near St. George, Westerleigh or South Beach neighborhoods; it's best to do your research early, and call a week or at least a few days ahead to make the reservations. The photo at right shows the bar in the Staten Island Ferry station in the St. George neighborhood. Romantic Restaurants on Staten Island - A Brief History of Valentine's Day The origins of Valentine's Day are not well documented. It's believed to have been named after Saint Valentine who was apparently a Catholic martyr who died over 1500 years ago. Today the holiday is not associated with religion so much as flowers, candies, cards and romantic dinners. And the holiday spokesperson is now Cupid, a Roman god of desire, and quite a mischief maker. Click here to read more about our round up of Valentine's Day restaurants on Staten Island - Valentine's Day on Staten Island.

Brooklyn Valentine's Day Restaurants & Events - Romantic Restaurants in Brooklyn NYC Brooklyn Valentine's Day Restaurants & Events Brooklyn Valentine's Day Restaurants in or near the Dumbo, Williamsburg, Clinton Hill, Fort Greene, Brooklyn Heights, Park Slope, Greenpoint, Brooklyn V Day Events in Bushwick, Greenwood Heights, Gowanus, Downtown Brooklyn, Sunset Park, Bayridge, Marine Park, Coney Island Neighborhoods of Brooklyn Updated February 11, 2019 / 2.4.2019 / Brooklyn Neighborhoods / Brooklyn Holiday Events / Brooklyn Events & Things To Do / Brooklyn Restaurants NYC / Brooklyn Blvd NYC. Valentine's Day is less than two weeks away. It's a good time to let your loved one know you care. Flowers, gifts and dinner are always welcome treats, and / or some thoughtful gesture that shows that the lady [or man] you're with, still means a lot to you. It's generally hard to make restaurant reservations on short notice at a romantic Bronx restaurant on Valentine's Day, and sometimes it's difficult to make them for the weekend preceding Valentine's Day. So if you're thinking about doing something this Valentine's Day for dinner in or around the Dumbo, Williamsburg, Clinton Hill, Fort Greene, Brooklyn Heights, Park Slope, Greenpoint, Bushwick, Greenwood Heights, Gowanus, Downtown Brooklyn, Sunset Park, Bayridge, Marine Park or Coney Island neighborhoods; it's best to do your research early, and call a week or at least a few days ahead to make the reservations. The photo at right shows xyz in the Brooklyn neighborhood. Romantic Restaurants in Brooklyn - A Brief History of Valentine's Day The origins of Valentine's Day are not well documented. It's believed to have been named after Saint Valentine who was apparently a Catholic martyr who died over 1500 years ago. Today the holiday is not associated with religion so much as flowers, candies, cards and romantic dinners. And the holiday spokesperson is now Cupid, a Roman god of desire, and quite a mischief maker. Click here to read more about our round up of Brooklyn Valentine's Day restaurants & Brooklyn V Day Events Brooklyn NYC.

Brooklyn Martin Luther King Day Weekend Things To Do - Brooklyn NYC Martin Luther King Weekend Things To Do in Brooklyn NYC Things To Do in Brooklyn over the MLK Day Weekend January 19, 2019 / Brooklyn Neighborhoods NYC / Things To Do in Brooklyn NYC / Brooklyn Blvd NYC. Weather. The Temperature highs will be around 40 on Friday and Sunday, dipping to the mid 30's on Saturday. The temperature lows will be in the low 30's on Friday and Saturday, dropping to 6 DEGREES on Sunday. There's 3 - 6 inches of either Rain or Snow forecast beginning about 3 / 4 pm Saturday and ending about 2 pm Sunday. Winds will rise all weekend, beginning at 7 mph on Friday, 15 mph Saturday and rising to over 20 mph on Sunday. The Humidity will be around 70% throughout the weekend. Click for Brooklyn Weekend Weather. Brief History of Martin Luther King Holiday in NYC Martin Luther King, Jr. was a Baptist Minister who became the leading voice for African Americans' non-violent civil rights movement beginning in the mid 1950's through to his assassination in 1968. In 1983, the third Monday of every year was set aside to honor Martin Luther King for his service to the nation. The third Monday was chosen, as it was the nearest Monday to the anniversary of King's birthday, which was January 15, 1929. Martin Luther King Holiday Special Events in Queens NYC Over the weekend, the Grand Prospect Hall at 263 Prospect Avenue in the South Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn is hosting the return of the Zlatne Uste Golden Festival. The festival celebrates Balkan life with music, dancing and performance. Not related to MLK but an option for a fun thing to do over the long weekend. For details go to www.goldenfest.org. On Monday, January 21st, in Fort Greene, the Brooklyn Academy of Music hosts its 33rd annual celebration of MLK's life. There will be musical performances, a speech by a modern day civil rights activist, and a film screening [culture / free]. On Monday the Prospect Park Alliance is hosting an MLK Day at the Lefferts Historic House in Prospect Park [culture / history / free but $3 donation suggested]. On Monday in Crown Heights the Brooklyn's Children's Museum is hosting a day celebrating the life the Martin Luther King. There will be arts and crafts, games, storytelling and a neighborhood march. On Monday the Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture at 53 Prospect Park West in Park Slope is hosting a day of cultural activities celebrating the life of Martin Luther King. Click here for Brooklyn things to do on Martin Luther King Day weekend.

Staten Island Things To Do - Martin Luther King Weekend Staten Island NYC Martin Luther King Weekend Things To Do on Staten Island NYC Things To Do on Staten Island over the MLK Day Weekend January 19, 2019 / Staten Island Neighborhoods NYC / Things To Do on Staten Island NYC / Staten Buzz NYC. Weather. The Temperature highs will be around 40 on Friday and Sunday, dipping to the mid 30's on Saturday. The temperature lows will be in the low 30's on Friday and Saturday, dropping to 6 DEGREES on Sunday. There's 3 - 6 inches of either Rain or Snow forecast beginning about 3 / 4 pm Saturday and ending about 2 pm Sunday. Winds will rise all weekend, beginning at 7 mph on Friday, 15 mph Saturday and rising to over 20 mph on Sunday. The Humidity will be around 70% throughout the weekend. Click for Staten Island Weather. Brief History of Martin Luther King Holiday in NYC Martin Luther King, Jr. was a Baptist Minister who became the leading voice for African Americans' non-violent civil rights movement beginning in the mid 1950's through to his assassination in 1968. In 1983, the third Monday of every year was set aside to honor Martin Luther King for his service to the nation. The third Monday was chosen, as it was the nearest Monday to the anniversary of King's birthday, which was January 15, 1929. Martin Luther King Holiday Special Events in the Staten Island NYC There's an MLK Day of Service on Sunday at the Greenbelt Nature Center from 1 pm - 3 pm on Staten Island. And on Monday at the Conference Park House Visitors Center from 11 am - 1 pm there's an MLK Day of Service for beach clean up near there on Staten Island. On both days in both places participants will have an opportunity to work with the NYC Parks Department to improve the quality of public green space by making them cleaner, greener and healthier. On Monday the Staten Island Children's Museum at 1000 Richmond Terrace, located on the grounds of the Snug Harbor Cultural Center, is hosting a storytelling session at 11 am and a musical performance at 3 pm, both of which are themed around the works and words of Martin Luther King. The museum offers free admission on this holiday. CLICK here for Staten Island things to do on Martin Luther King Day weekend.

NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio Delivers State of the City Address 2019 De Blasio Delivers State of the City Address 2019 The Mayor Recounts a Year of Accomplishment & Seems to Push the Envelope January 22, 2019 / Upper West Side Neighborhood / NYC Government & Politics / Manhattan Neighborhoods NYC / Gotham Buzz NYC. On Thursday, January 10th, Mayor Bill de Blasio delivered his fifth State of the City Address at Symphony Space on the Upper West Side. To date the Mayor has delivered the address in three of the five boroughs, and this was the third delivered in Manhattan [at Apollo Theater in Harlem in 2017 and Baruch in 2015]. He delivered the third address in 2016 at Lehman College in the Bedford Park neighborhood of the Bronx and his fourth at Kings Theatre in the Flatbush Ditmas neighborhood of Brooklyn in 2018. Queens and Staten Island have yet to host the Mayor's State of the City Address, but he has a couple more years in which to make that happen, should he choose to do deliver his address in all five boroughs. I arrived on a cold January morning. There was a crowd lined up outside, waiting to pass through security, even though it was well over a half hour before the address was to begin. Inside there was a large crowd mingling, and eventually it looked like it was a full house. There were the usual warm up speeches and performances, including the Invocation by the NYPD Chaplain, Rabbi Alvin Kass, the singing of 'God Bless America' by NYFD vocalist Regina Wilson and an introductory speech by the First Lady Chirlane McCray. CLICK here to read our full report of Mayor Bill de Blasio's State of the City Address 2019.

IND GB _ Women's March NYC 2019

Women & Their Friends Take to the Streets to Express Their Disfavor of Dysfunctional Donald

January 19, 2019 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics & Issues / Gotham Buzz NYC.

The Women's March 2019 begins at 10 am with speeches at 72nd Street and Central Park West, near the American Museum of Natural History on the Upper West Side. It then marches south along Central Park West to 59th Street, turns east marching to 6th Avenue, before turning south until 42nd Street where it ends [social / free]. It's all over by 2 pm.

The photo at right shows the Women's March as it ended on 42nd Street in January of 2017. The march returned in 2018 and is back again Saturday. The intent of the march is to make a public statement about the policies of Donald J. Trump.

Opinon - Murdoch's Media Manipulations & American Taxpayers get Trchump Changed.

It seems like Rupert Murdoch's Fox News is trying to divide the women, by exploiting and sensationalizing an emerging fissure caused by an appearance made by a controversial figure at one of the Women's March events.

In the past Murdoch and his mass media appear to have been incredibly effective at finding and exploiting fissures in the English speaking democracies. Murdoch - a practicioner of the media dark arts - does this almost invisibly by hiding in the shadows behind his branded media companies and highly paid propagandists who act as the face of his manipulative narratives. When the people grow tired of them, like they did with Bill O'Reilly and Roger Ailes, he swaps them out and inserts new faces - like Sean Hannity and Tucker Carlson, who keep singing the same old Murdoch tunes. Murdoch's mass media were instrumental in promoting Trump to victory and in convincing Britons to pursue Brexit - both from which the mega billionaire seemed to be in a position to profit handsomely.

And now Murdoch's mass media seems intent on hyping the emerging divisions in the women's movement in order to weaken it. It's an old colonial strategy for conquest, that once enabled the British to rule an empire upon which "the sun never set". Putin's Russia has also begun using the divide to conquer strategy to stir chaos in western democracies in order to weaken them.

It seems the world has not seen anything like Murdoch's manipulative media machine, since Adolph Hitler and Joseph Goebbels first began exploiting mass media technologies in the 1930's to manipulate huge, ignorant or unengaged, segments of entire populations away from the truth - so that the propagandistic practicioners could stir up the emotions of unthinking crowds in order to serve their own ends.

Since Trump came to office, the FCC has given the green light to Murdoch's acquisition of more local TV stations and approved Murdoch's Bob-Iger-enabled, inverted acquisition of Disney / ABC, while providing huge tax cuts for billionaires like Murdoch. Trump has also established and maintained an American taxpayer-financed military presence in Syria since taking office, even though the Donald campaigned against such military interventionist actions in his 2016 campaign. Promises made. Promises broken? Like Mexico - not the American taxpayer - was going to pay for the wall?

Many of Trump's FCC [Federal Communications Commission] rollbacks, American children financed tax cuts for the super-rich [like Rupert Murdoch], and military interventionist policies in the Middle East appear to provide a quid pro quo benefit to Rupert Murdoch, whose unrelenting media support before and after the election seems to have enabled Trump to secure, and subsequently hang onto power.

It's worth noting that Rupert Murdoch and former VP Dick Cheney [both men were criticial proponents of the phony Weapons of Mass Destruction narrative used to thrust the U.S. into the Iraqi War] have substantial ownership stakes in an oil company - Genie Energy - which is drilling for and may have found huge oil and gas deposits in the illegally occupied Syrian Golan Heights. It appears the plan is to steal the oil, gas and land from the Syrian people using American taxpayers' dollars [also akin to stealing] to finance their conversion of theft to riches.

Quelle surprise?

Bonne chance en marche dames. Translation - Good luck with your march ladies.

ALL _ The Road Ahead 2019

A Few Axioms To Keep In Mind Throughout The New Year

December 31, 2018 / Brooklyn Neighborhoods / Staten Island Neighborhoods / Holidays / Brooklyn BLVD NYC & Staten Buzz NYC.

For all of us, tomorrow starts the beginning of the new year.

I usedto make new years resolutions that generally lasted a few days or few weeks. Over time I've given that up and have focused on a few guiding principles that I work toward throughout the year, every year.

1. The first guidepost is to keep things as simple as possible by letting things go, so you can change and evolve who you are. Over time it's important to learn to let go of the past which includes letting many of the people, projects and things - once so meaningful and relevant - to fade away with time. This process involves discarding much of what one collects, in order to open up space in your life to make room for new possibilities.

2. The second guidepost is to take care of the vessel that carries one's being - meaning take care of your body because it's the only one you'll ever get, and it has to last an entire lifetime. This means consuming the foods that will enable the body to function properly and ward off disease, while recognizing that satisfying the mind is important too, as it's a part of the body. There are three elements to this guideline.

a _ Try to maximize consumption of natural foods while managing / minimalizing consumption of the delicious processed foods that come in packages. Read package container nutrition labels which indicate the amount of fat, sugar, sodium andcholesterol consumed per serving. You can manage the balance of natural and processed foods depending on what's going on in life, meaning leaning toward natural foods to take care of the body, and leaning toward tasty processed foods to treat your mind.

b _ Reduce consumption of toxins by first paying attention to the quantities consumed of them, and then by substituting the toxins with healthier choices. For example dilute a soft drink with seltzer water [cuts sugar], or swap in a lemonade for a beer [cuts alcohol], or swap in pretzels for potato chips [cuts salt and fat]. Over the years these little substitutions can add up to some fair measure of weight loss or stability, and can aid in maintaining generally good health. But it's also important not to deprive oneself, too much, of some of the simple pleasures in life that keep one going - experience tells us not to be too draconian, or you can expect a subconscious rebellion, and then your program doesn't work.

c _ The third element of this guidepost is to try to walk and bike whenever possible. It's a good way to kill two birds with one stone, as it enables getting somewhere, while also getting some exercise. And be sure to carve out enough time each night, for a proper rest.

3. The third guidepost is to try to move your life in the direction of your interests. This will likely take a great many years, as well as needing to make a good number of economic and other lifestyle trade offs. But if successful, you can then spend most of your time doing the things that totally engage you. It's said that "when someone is doing something they truly love, they'll never have to work another day in their life."

4. The fourth guidepost is to keep on learning, because "luck is when preparation meets opportunity". So the more you learn, and the more experience you get, the better prepared you'll be ... come what may.

May your new year be filled with promise and possibilities. Best wishes for a happy and successful 2019.

Gotham 1470 = ALL

Staten Island New Years Parties - Staten Island New Years Eve Restaurants - Staten Island NYC Staten Island New Years Eve Parties & NYE Restaurants Staten Island New Years Eve Parties in Castleton, Stapleton, Richmond Town, Great Kills, Rossville, Tompkinsville near St. George, Westerleigh & South Beach Neighborhoods of Staten Island Updated December 22, 2018 from 11.28.18 / Staten Island Neighborhoods / Staten Island Holiday Events / Staten Island Events & Things To Do / Staten Island Restaurants NYC / Staten Buzz NYC. New Years Eve occurs on a Monday this year, meaning that it's going to be an extended party weekend. While the celebrations may begin early on the weekend, the big events will all be held on New Years Eve, thus ending the year. While New Years Eve is one big party, it's important to keep in mind, that like St. Patrick's Day, all the amateurs come out to play [it's not just the Irish who are out drinking on St. Patrick's Day]. So some measure of caution is advised and you have to be careful. Click here to read more about our round up of New Years Eve parties on Staten Island - New Years Eve restaurants Staten Island.

Brooklyn New Years Parties - Brooklyn New Years Eve Restaurants - Brooklyn NYC Brooklyn New Years Eve Parties & NYE Restaurants Brooklyn New Years Eve Parties in near the Dumbo, Williamsburg, Clinton Hill, Fort Greene, Brooklyn Heights, Park Slope, Greenpoint, Bushwick, Greenwood Heights, Gowanus, Downtown Brooklyn, Sunset Park, Bayridge, Marine Park, Coney Island Neighborhoods of Brooklyn Dozens of New Additions / Updated December 27, 2018 from 11.28.18 / Brooklyn Neighborhoods / Brooklyn Holiday Events / Brooklyn Events & Things To Do / Brooklyn Restaurants NYC / Brooklyn Blvd NYC. New Years Eve occurs on a Monday this year, meaning that it's going to be an extended party weekend. While the celebrations may begin early on the weekend, the big events will all be held on New Years Eve, thus ending the year. While New Years Eve is one big party, it's important to keep in mind, that like St. Patrick's Day, all the amateurs come out to play [it's not just the Irish who are out drinking on St. Patrick's Day]. So some measure of caution is advised and you have to be careful. Click here to read more about our round up of New Years Eve parties in Brooklyn - New Years Eve restaurants Brooklyn.

Brooklyn Holiday Markets & Holiday Shopping - Brooklyn NYC Brooklyn Holiday Markets, Christmas Shopping & Hanukkah Shopping Brooklyn Christmas Shopping, Hanukkah Shopping & Brooklyn Holiday Markets November 18, 2018 / Brooklyn Neighborhoods / NYC Shopping / Brooklyn BLVD NYC. Holiday outdoor markets have been on the rise in Brooklyn since the dawn of the 21st century. While some date back many years, some are relatively new. Shopping at holiday markets alone, with friends, or with the kids gives folks a chance to enjoy the fruits of their labor and satisfy some of their yearnings and some of the yearnings of those we love. Each of the Brooklyn holiday markets is a bit different, as some are organized by community groups and others by business organizations. Oftentimes one can find artisanal products that are made in NYC or NYS. Brooklyn Holiday Markets Getting Underway The Brooklyn holiday markets get underway shortly after Halloween, with some coming opening up about the time of Thanksgiving. The Brooklyn holiday markets are located in or near the following Brooklyn neighborhoods - Greenpoint, Williamsburg, Bushwick, Fort Greene, Brooklyn Heights, Downtown Brooklyn, Prospect Park, Park Slope, Sunset Park, Bayridge, Gowanus, Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill and Dyker Heights. Many either include the serving of some beverage like hot chocolate and generally snacks like cookies - or are near food vendors and restaurants. Click here to read our report about Brooklyn Holiday Markets & Shopping - Brooklyn NYC.

Staten Island Holiday Markets Shopping & Events - Staten Island NYC Staten Island Holiday Markets, Holiday Events, Christmas Shopping & Holiday Things To Do Staten Island Christmas Tree Lightings, Staten Island Menorah Lightings Hanukkah, Staten Island Holiday Markets & Holiday Shopping Updated December 4, 2018 / November 24, 2018 / Staten Island Neighborhoods / NYC Shopping / Staten Island Buzz NYC. The holidays are a special time of the year. In ancient times there were harvest celebrations to give thanks and enjoy the bounty after a long growing and harvesting season aka a year of work.   THESE HOLIDAY EVENT & HOLIDAY MARKETS ARE ORGANIZED 1. BY NEIGHBORHOODS OF STATEN ISLAND 2. And BY DATE Watch carefully as some locales have multiple dates, and all dates for a given locale are shown at the time the venue is first listed.   And there were also winter solstice celebrations to commemorate the end of the darkening of the skies. Some cultures celebrate with a festival of lights, and in Christian cultures the holidays are marked with holiday lightings including tree lightings and candle lightings - as well as the celebration of giving through the most well known and most generous man in the world - Santa Claus. Meanwhile, back on Staten Island we celebrate in a number of ways, which carry on some of these ancient traditions. The following provides the dates / times / locales and some details regarding many of the various Staten Island holiday celebrations and Staten Island holiday markets and shopping for folks to enjoy between now and the end of the year. Click here to read our report about Staten Island Holiday Events / Holiday Things To Do & Staten Island Holiday Markets & Shopping.

Brooklyn Holiday Events & Things To Do - Brooklyn NYC Brooklyn Holiday Events & Things To Do NYC Brooklyn Holiday Things To Do - Christmas Tree Lightings, Brooklyn Hanukkah Menorah Lightings & Kwanzaa Holiday Candle Lightings December 28, 2018 / Brooklyn Neighborhoods / NYC Shopping / Brooklyn BLVD NYC. Community holiday events have been on the rise in Brooklyn since the start of the 21st century. While some date back many years, even prior to the start of the 21st century, many are relatively new. Enjoying a community get together around the holidays is a good way to share in other people's cultures and strengthen the human bonds that transcend cultural variation. Or conversely, an opportunity to share your cultural upbringing with others. Each of the Brooklyn holiday events is a bit different, as some are organized by community groups, local government officials and others by business organizations. Oftentimes one can find artisanal products that are made in NYC or NYS for sale, but we've dedicated a special section to announcing Brooklyn Holiday Markets & Shopping - Brooklyn NYC. Brooklyn Holiday Events & Things To Do Getting Underway The Brooklyn holiday events get underway shortly after Halloween, with some coming opening up about the time of Thanksgiving. The Brooklyn holiday events are located in or near the following Brooklyn neighborhoods - Greenpoint, Williamsburg, Bushwick, Fort Greene, Brooklyn Heights, Downtown Brooklyn, Prospect Park, Park Slope, Sunset Park, Bayridge, Gowanus, Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill and Dyker Heights. Many either include the serving of some beverage like hot chocolate and generally snacks like cookies - or are near food vendors and restaurants. Click here to read our report about Brooklyn Holiday Events / Holiday Things To Do in Brooklyn NYC.

Brooklyn Things To Do - Brooklyn NYC Brooklyn Things To Do Brooklyn Events near - sunset park, brighton beach, carroll gardens, cobble hill, red hook, fort hamilton, brooklyn heights, prospect park, park slope, bayridge, prospect heights, clinton hill, fort greene, gowanus, greenpoint, williamsburg, flatbush, bushwick, bedford stuyvesant, crown heights and brownsville neighborhoods in brooklyn nyc November 26, 2018 / Brooklyn Neighborhoods / Brooklyn Blvd NYC. Click here for Brooklyn Things To Do - Brooklyn NYC.

Thanksgiving Day - America's Communal Holiday NYC Thanksgiving - America's Communal Holiday The Pilgrims Legacy: Love, Sharing & Community Empowerment November 19, 2018 / NYC Neighborhoods / Thanksgiving Holidays in NYC / Gotham Buzz NYC. For the past couple of days, I've been searching for something to say about the Thanksgiving holiday. My Mother died this Fall, and it will be my first Thanksgiving without a living parent, so I reckon that's led me to musings about who we are, and what we're doing, and why we're all here. If you're looking for answers to those questions in this little story, I can save you a few minutes by telling you that you won't find any definitive answers here. Anyhow, after various false starts, I happened upon a childhood storybook that I had saved since I was a first grader. I was young enough to still like fairytales and old enough to be learning to read. The book, A Gateway to Storyland, by Platt & Munk Co, was given to me around the holidays. The fairytale storybook contains a warm, loved feeling that I still can get, when I periodically open it. When I was younger I read it numerous times, as the words and the illustrations fed the imagination. Unselfish Parental Love Manifested by Empowering Progeny Love comes in many forms, but the purest form is unselfish love. The love of truly giving something with no thought of anything in return. That love is likely most often given generationally - from parents to children - from one generation to another. And one of the greatest gifts is the gift of teaching someone something that they will be able to put to good use throughout their lives. Parents do this all the time, when they teach their children's skills and impart some of their knowledge and wisdom ... just as my parents did many years ago, by giving me a well illustrated fairytale book to encourage my learning to read. Pilgrims: Shared Communal Resources to Actualize a Dream At Thanksgiving time we commemorate one of America's first settlements, founded by the risk-taking, resource-pooling, communal sharing Pilgrims. The Pilgrims were early English settlers who arrived on these shores in the early 17th century [1600's]. They came here because they wanted a measure of freedom and self-determination that they were forbidden in Europe or what we call the 'old country'. They wanted to practice their faith in a way that differed from the established Church of England. They took great risks, pooled / shared their communal resources to obtain a ship, the Mayflower, to cross the Atlantic in mid September of 1620, landing here at Plymouth Rock in Massachusetts on November 9, 1620. Help Comes from a Foreign People in a Strange Land Per Wikipedia, they survived a hard winter in 1621 with the help of the Wampanoag, an American Indian tribe. The Pilgrims were the immigrants, and the Indian natives welcomed them. The Wampanaog taught the Pilgrims how to catch eels, and how to grow and harvest corn. Thus the Pilgrims ended 1621 with a good harvest which they celebrated and shared with their new friends, expressing their thanks to a higher power, aka God, for the success of their endeavors. Hence the celebration entered into American lore, as the first Thanksgiving. CLICK here for the rest of the story about Thanksgiving Day sentiments in NYC.

IND & SB _ Trump Suffers Huge Losses in Midterms

Americans Sharply Reprimand the Un-Reality TV President

November 7, 2018 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics & Government / New Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.

The American people have spoken.

 

Now what the voters have said, by virtue of their votes, is already being spun by Donald Trump's and Rupert Murdoch's propaganda spin machines in order to further their self-serving agendas.

 

But before we look at the spin, let's look at the facts, as the electoral outcome is a measure of the American people's endorsement - or lack thereof - of the presidency of Donald J. Trump and by association, Rupert Murdoch, the multi-billionaire, global propagandist who was instrumental in helping Trump take the White House.

 

Republicans Gain 2 Senate Seats - One from Pence's Home State of Indiana & Possibly a 3rd from Donald's 2nd Home State of Florida

The Republican Party strengthened its already firm grip on the Senate by picking up three [North Dakota, Missouri & Indiana] maybe four [Florida] Democratic Senate seats, while losing one Republican seat [Nevada], leaving them with a net gain of two or three seats.

So, assuming that the follow on election in Mississippi goes to Republicans, and the current tiny leads in Arizona and Florida are not overwhelmed with absentee ballots, the Senate tally will change from the current 49 Democrats - 51 Republicans to 46 Democrats - 54 Republicans. Of note is that Republicans had only six seats to defend, while Democrats had 27 seats up for grabs.

At the moment there are three unresolved Senate races, two of which have have been Republican [Arizona & Mississippi] and the third of which is Florida [Democratic incumbent], so this tally could change.

Home States Advantage. It's worth mentioning that one of the seats picked up by the Republicans came from Indiana, the home state of Vice President Mike Pence, and the possibility of anopther comes from Florida, which I categorize as the second home state of President Donald Trump, given how much property he owns / manages there and how often he golfs there.

 

Republicans Lose 27 Seats & Control of the House & Lose Control of 7 State Capitals

The Republican Party lost 27 and likely more seats in the House, thus relinquishing their majority in that body for the first time in eight years. And for the first time during the Trump presidency, the opposition Democrats have an opportunity to play a real role in governing again. The Democrats now have subpoena power, they have the power to impeach, and no legislation can be passed without Democratic signatures. At present count the Democrats have won 222 seats [218 provides majority rule] to the Republicans 194 seats, and there are 17 races that have not yet been officially announced, so the net loss / gain tallies will change, as the remaining 19 contests are settled. There are 435 congressional representatives.

But perhaps most importantly, the Republican Party lost control of at least seven state capitals to the Democrats. And all of those new Democratic governors are going to have the final say on congressional seat redistricting for the next decade, beginning in 2020. At the beginning of this election Democrats controlled just 16 State Houses, while the present tally shows them likely to control 23 or more, an increase of seven states, and a near doubling of those up for election [7 Democratic and 7 Republican governors were not facing re-election this year].

It's worth mentioning that voters said Donald J. Trump was one of the two top issues of the campaign - along with healthcare. So there's no dodging that in the eyes of the electorate, the Trump group has failed the American people. But that's not likely to stop the Trump, Hannity & Murdoch propaganda machine from spinning their tales to the weak minded in their audiences who wish to believe. INSERT CHART.

 

Murdoch's Propaganda WSJ & Fox 'News' Hyper Spin the Electoral Losses into a Trump 'Triumph of the Will'

The Murdoch's Wall Street Journal read that "Democrats Retake the House after 8 years of GOP Rule", and then pretty much ignored the headline, diving straight into the Murdoch spin of the results of the night. There were four stories following the headline.

The WSJ Editorial Board, presumably overseen by the Wall St. Journal Editorial Page Manager Paul Gigot [who decided to hold a story about Trump's mob ties just prior to the 2016 general election], blamed the loss on 'America's deep political divisions'. Murdoch's WSJ, NY Post and Fox News really should take a bow for their contributions to inflaming these divisions, because many of them appear made possible in part by three decades of the Murdoch media machine feeding and exacerbating those divisions. The WSJ said the Democrats retaking of the House and huge gains at the State House level, was less than a "blue wave".

The next Wall St Journal propaganda spin went on to promote the idea that Trump is a billionaire celebrity, who rode his populism to the Oval Office. They then went on to congratulate Trump for not fizzling out like other populists before him, and seemed to encourage Trump's combative style.

The third WSJ propaganda piece boldly states that Trump "Did What He Needed To Do In The Midterms", which presumably was to hang onto the Senate. Given the Democrats had 27 Senate seats at stake and the Republicans had only six, keeping the Senate Republican shouldn't have been a daunting task for any president.

And then Murdoch's WSJ completed the head-spinning narrative with a fourth story about how the Republicans have built upon their Senate Majority. It's amazing how Murdoch's Wall St Journal managed to ignore the truth of what really happened Tuesday night. And what's even more amazing is that likely most in the Wall St Journal audience likely won't realize they are being manipulated by the narrative spin on the election results, as the WSJ focused on the the Trump wins and nearly completely ignored the game changing Trump losses.

Bear in mind that this is not your father's Wall Street Journal. It's now Rupert Murdoch's Wall St. Journal - which means it's Fox Fake 'News' disguised as a once reputable national newspaper.

The Fox Fake News Network was even more entertaining to observe. Rupert Murdoch's multi-billionaire spin machine washed the reality out of the election results like cleaning dirty laundry, first ridding it clean of negative facts, and then delivering it disguised as 'news' to an audience that appears to collaborate with Fox Fake News to deceive themselves by consuming Murdoch's nationally branded propagandist media. Many 'good' Germans did this in 1930's Germany.

My favorite headlines on the Fox 'News' site were 'Trump Gains Allies in Senate' but the winning headline was 'Thank You President Trump. You've got the GOP in Great Shape for 2020 and Left the Liberals Speechless'. Fox News, the WSJ and the NY Post provided their audience with scant recognition of the reality of what just happened because it doesn't fit into their mass manipulation narrative and they appear to be trying to keep up Trump Republicans' morale. This reminds me of accounts of how the Allied victories in WWII were treated in Joseph Goebbels' propagandistic narratives about Adolph Hitler as a military genius.

That said, the GOP may be in good shape for 2020, but not for the reasons proffered by Fox in their report. Rather, because sometime in 2019 Murdoch will complete the takeover of Disney / ABC and he will control more than half of America's broadcast media.

 

Goebbels & Murdoch's Phony Trump 'Triumph of the Will'

There are people who are completely ignorant, like the Florida pipe bomber who was an avid Trump supporter, and there are people who are disinformed, like the Pittsburgh synogogue mass murderer who used the same language to describe the immigrant caravan as used on Murdoch's Fox 'News' in his last tweet [invaders]. These people, and others like them, might permit themselves to believe the 180 degree narrative spin of the Murdoch propaganda machine. They might walk away from a Murdoch newspaper, news site or TV broadcast thinking that Trump and the Republicans didn't really have their MAGA hats handed to them on Tuesday, but actually won - thanks to the brilliance of the great leader, Donald. Sieg Heil?

A little more than 90 years ago, Joseph Goebbels used to publicize these same kind of adulatory reports about Adolph Hitler as Hitler ascended to power. Goebbels told the German people how everything Adolph did was really a brilliant win - even many years later when the facts started indicating otherwise. Far too many of the German people allowed themselves to believe Goebbels propagandistic fake news reports through to the end of the war, as in Goebbels' last report in April 1945, he told his ignorant and disinformed German audience that the American invaders would rape their women and murder their children. Sound familiar? See why below.

 

Will Trump & Murdoch Continue Mass Deceit & Manipulation?

Murdoch's Fox Fake News treachery was on display again during the midterm election. There were numerous journalistic transgressions by Fox 'News' including the running of one of Trump's fake news ads which simplistically and inaccurately blamed the Democrats for releasing a lone immigrant killer, who the two billionaires appeared to use to smear and depict as all immigrants.

The irony of the Trump advertisement on Fox 'News' is that the killer they picked was reportedly [by the Sacramento Bee] freed by Sheriff Joe Arpaio, the recipient of one of Trump's executive pardons. Murdoch's Fox 'News' ran the ad until they found they were the only network running it [other networks refused it or pulled it]. Murdoch's Fox 'News' finally pulled it with only two days remaining before the election. Murdoch's investors need not worry, as he did not turn away much of the revenue.

Murdoch's Fox 'News' breached other journalistic protocols too numerous to mention. But it is worth noting that they recklessly hyped an immigrant caravan of several thousand people, including children, marching on foot as 'invaders'. The reality of the 'invading' caravan of poor destitute people, was that it was smaller than most parades in New York City. Trump added to the deceit by calling on thousands of U.S. Military troops to "defend our borders". Most pundits saw this as an election fear mongering ploy.

We'll soon find out - like we did with Hillary's emails - which Fox 'News' hyped nearly daily / making so much fuss about them prior to the 2016 election - and about which we've heard virtually nothing ever since.

As mentioned above, it's worth mentioning that the murderer who attacked a synagogue in Pittsburgh on Saturday, October 27th, 2018 tweeted that he was "going in" to kill the Jews who he believed were assisting the caravan of "invaders".

 

Murdoch Taking Control of Disney / ABC - Let the 2020 Mayhem Begin

Few government officials and corporate media outlets appear to be paying much attention to the fact that the world's most dangerous, free-world propagandist is about to take control of Disney / ABC. Disney / ABC is one of the top six news / content producing news organizations in America. This merger, combined with Murdoch's control of 21st Century Fox and Newscorp - also two of America's top six news / content producing organizations - will give billionaire, global propagandist Rupert Murdoch control of over half of America's airwaves.

When you see how much disinformation Murdoch fake news outlets can spread with the media assets he currently controls, think the havoc he will create once he nearly doubles the media assets under his control.

Some Australians already know how oppressive it feels like to have one man, unanswerable to anyone, making all the decisions about who is promoted into positions of power. The rest of the Australians remain completely unaware that their government has been taken over, even as Australians appear to have lost control of their government decade(s) ago to Rupert Murdoch's near monopoly of Australian media.

Australia has become what I call a Media Controlled State [as opposed to state controlled media]. Since siezing control, Murdoch appears to have promoted a former employee [Tony Abbott] to be Australian Prime Minister [2013 - 2015], and Abbott's Administration subsequently failed to file a follow on court motion in a court case between Murdoch and the Australian government, which resulted in the Australian taxpayers giving Murdoch a nearly $1 billion tax break / gift. Australia's national budget was in the neighborhood of $400 billion, so that's a significant budget item - especially to give to one corporation because of one man.

Murdoch also appears to have had his minion Australian Prime Ministers re-write Australia's broadcast regulations over the years. The seemingly Murdoch inspired deregulation enables Murdoch, a foreigner, to control a monopoly share of the Australian media market and by association the national conversation - even though he is not a citizen or resident of that nation. Ever since Murdoch gained the upper hand in Australian media, it appears that nobody becomes Prime Minister without Rupert Murdoch's approval. And Murdoch appears to get his way on national policies that matter to him, or his cronies, as well. Pay heed, because Rupert Murdoch is approaching a nation-controlling share of America's media. And he, like Goebbels before him, appears to use the media to manipulate the vast number of uninformed and / or ignorant voters [like the two referenced above] in pursuit of his own self-serving greed and lust for ever more power. There is, in my mind, something inherently wrong with such people. Bad code.

Donald Trump isn't the only threat facing our democracy. If most Americans are relying on media outlets like Fox 'News', the Wall St Journal and the NY Post - media outlets that fail to include key facts and / or provide distorted narratives of the news - real democracy cannot work. It will not work under such conditions, because we'll never have an intelligent, informed discussion about the issues confronting us, but rather constantly struggle to clean up a Murdoch media manufactured fictional narrative, fostered by fear mongering phonies like Trump and Hannity, to stir the mindless masses into a frenzy, while they steal away our precious liberties, that so many of our American ancestors have risked or given their lives to defend. Sometime next year [2019], you can begin adding Disney / ABC as a Murdoch media outlet, as he is expected to complete his clever Fox inverted takeover of them by early / mid year.

 

Republicans Suffer Bloodbath in NYS State Elections

On the local level the New York Times reports that NYS Governor Democrat Andrew Cuomo sailed to victory winning 3.350 million votes [59%] to Republican Marc Molinaro's 2.088 million votes [36.8%] to retain his position. For NYS Attorney General Democrat Letitia James bested Cuomo, winning 3.444 million votes [61.9%] to Republican Keith Wofford's 1.985 million votes [35.7%]. NYS Comptroller Democrat Thomas Di Napoli won re-election handily, besting both Cuomo and James with 3.715 million votes [66.6%] to Republican Jonathan Trichter's 1.766 million votes [31.7%]. NYS Senator Democrat Kirsten Gillebrand received 3.699 million votes [66.6%] to Republican Chele Farley's 1.855 million votes [33.4%]. Ballotopedia reports that Democrat Kathy Hochul retained the Lieutenant Governor position with 3.352 million votes [57%] versus Julie Killian who received 2.088 million votes [36.1%].

Republicans also lost all real power in the NYS Legislature, as Democrats won the Senate for the first time in quite a while, while retaining control of the Assembly. While all of the races are not yet final, it looks like in the NYS Senate Democrats will have about 40 seats vs Republicans 23, and in the NYS Assembly Democrats will have 107 seats vs 43. So at the state level, it was a Republican bloodbath.

Having one party in complete control, as we have seen at the national level, is rarely optimal.

In NYS Congressional races there was a surprise win for the Democrats with Max Rose defeating incumbent Republican Dan Donovan in Staten Island's Congressional District 11. And in the 14th District in the Bronx / Queens Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, aged 29, set a record by becoming the youngest female congresswoman in American history.

On the Ballot Issues - all three were passed [Yes] with winning margins ranging with 4x, just under 2x and just under 3x Yes's to No's respectively. The numbered ballot issues are explained below.

ALL _ Ballot Questions Tuesday

Most Pols Urge Folks to Vote Yes - I Respectfully Disagree

November 5, 2018 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics & Government / New Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.

Tomorrow on your ballot you will find three ballot initiatives which appear designed to encourage participation in the electoral process. One pol informed me that NY State had the 8th lowest turnout in the nation in 2016 and these ballot initiatives are an effort to engage the public.

Most NYC public officials have come out in favor of the initiatives, with their rationale being that it will encourage participation by the electorate. While I applaud their initiative and efforts, I disagree with the specific proposals.

#1. Campaign Finance. To increase public matching from 6:1 to 8:1. To reduce the maximum campaign contribution from up to $5,100 for Mayor to $2,000 and from $3,950 to $1,500 for city council members. To reduce the requirements to qualify for those funds. And to make those funds available earlier in the campaign.

I like the idea of increasing the matching from 6:1 to 8:1 as an incentive to increase voter participation in elections. But that's where my support for this proposal ends. If my reading of the ruling of the Supreme Court in 2009 / 2010 in the Citizens United Case is correct that part of the ballot proposal is unconstitutional. While I don't know the specifics of how they've loosened the requirements to qualify for matching public funds or exactly how soon a candidate can access them - I've yet to hear of any major viable candidate complaining that their inability to qualify for or access public matching funds caused them to drop out of or lose a race. So making it easier for political candidates to obtain public money doesn't seem like a good idea to me - but I certainly understand why it would seem like a good idea to pols.

#2. A Civic Engagement Commission. To establish a civic engagement commission of 15 members, with 8 appointed by the Mayor, 2 by the City Council Speaker, 1 by each of the five Borough Presidents. The Commission Chair would be appointed by the Mayor and given a staff. The mission of this group would be to encourage civic engagement in the budgeting process by working with local groups and setting up translators at local poll sites.

How different is this from the role played by the Community Boards? The NYC.gov website states,

"The purpose of each New York City Community Board is to encourage and facilitate the participation of citizens within City government within their communities, and the efficient and effective organization of agencies that deliver municipal services in local communities and boroughs."

This seems redundantly bureaucratic to me. Instead of adding layers of bureaucracy, they should be working to make the existing government apparatus more meaningful and effective.

#3. Set Term Limits For Community Boards & Require Borough Presidents to Seek out Diversity. They want to limit Community Board members to four consecutive two year terms. And require Borough Presidents to seek out diverse people to serve as board members.

The only place I like term limits is in the Executive branch - because that's where most of the real power is vested. I don't like term limiting council members, assembly members, congress[wo]men or Senators because they are the locus of institutional knowledge. So I don't like seeing community board members term limited because they understand how the system works, and by the time the new ones move up the learning curve, term limits forces them from office, leaving those who lobby these groups with most of the control.

As for diversity - I'm all for it - but there are plenty of anti-discrimination laws already in place. At some point people have to begin to organize and stand up for themselves. Based upon the last eleven years of local reporting, the people of NYC appear to be pretty good at doing that. And if people feel they are being discriminated against, I suggest seeing a non-profit or for profit attorney about pressing your case.

A Navy Yard Brooklyn Halloween Party

The 733 Collective Steps Out into Limelight at the Brooklyn Navy Yard

October 29, 2018 / Brooklyn Navy Yard & Brooklyn Neighborhoods / Brooklyn Halloween Parties / Fact N' Fiction / Brooklyn BLVD.

It was a dark and stormy night. And all around the campfire. There were Briggins tall and Briggins small. Luigi said the Captain, Tell us a tale. So Luigi began ...

It was a dark and stormy night ... as I made my way west on Flushing Avenue along the southern perimeter of the Williamsburg neighborhood on my way to the Brooklyn Navy Yard. The dark wet streets were largely empty of pedestrian traffic, except for a few Hasidic Jews, one of whom gave me directions. I encountered construction along Flushing Avenue, just west of the BQE, but all in all it was smooth journey.

I arrived at the 77 Building and passed through the building security, taking the elevator to the 15th floor. The building had recently been completed, and the 15th floor had not yet been rented out. So the organizers of the party, many architects by profession, obtained an option to use the space for Halloween Weekend night.

The space was massive. It was literally thousands of square feet, with very high ceilings [likely 18 feet] and floor-to-ceiling windows on all walls. The location was also pretty remarkable as it is just across Flushing Avenue from the Brooklyn Coffee Company, less than a half mile north of Fort Greene Park, and less than a mile from Downtown Brooklyn / Cadman Plaza Park. And, of course, the Brooklyn Navy Yard is located along the East River, but not yet a regular NYC Ferry stop [they've done special pick ups like during the Clinton / Sanders debate of April 2016].

Coming off the elevator I had no idea what to expect. As I entered the party there were two reception desks - one staffed by folks working with the organizers of the event, the 733 Collective. And the other staffed by a Laughing Rabbit representing the Twisted Toy Factory. Given the party name - I decided to go with the rabbit.

As I approached the rabbit's desk Grace Jones emerged, taking a spot alongside the twisted toy figure. She was accompanied by an Asian Athena, who had a hand in bringing the crafty long eared mammal to life. They gave me my press credentials without saying a word. Rabbits may laugh, but they don't talk a lot.

I headed into the building, passing one of the toy stores along the way. There were several large platforms of figures mounted on the large boards, which I'll come back to a bit later in this report. I was on a mission - to find Hannibal ... not Lektor, but one of the founders of the 733 Collective with whom I had arranged my visit.

Like so many highly paid workers these days, he wasn't working, but rather talking things up with his pals. I asked him if he could spare a few moments of his break time to chat. He didn't seem to mind.

I'll have the rest of this hopefully tomorrow = Tuesday, 10/30/18.

Staten Island Halloween Parties - Staten Island Halloween Restaurants & Parades - Staten Island NYC Staten Island Halloween Parties 2018 Halloween Parties on Staten Island, North Shore & Other Neighborhoods on Staten Island October 17, 2018 / Staten Island Neighborhoods NYC / Staten Island Restaurants & Bars / Staten Buzz NYC. Halloween occurs on a Wednesday this year. The Staten Island Halloween party celebrations begin as early as Friday, October 26th running through the weekend, with some also on Halloween day itself. Halloween is one big costume party, where the theatrical side of people, is given a small opening. Halloween provides people the opportunity to create and play roles they have wanted to play, that the day-to-day keeps submerged. Is it their Doctor side or their Jekyll side - or something uncategorizable? In the photo at right are NYC Halloween partyers in an earlier year. Professional actors are paid to assume and perform roles, but on Halloween it's an all-volunteer, unpaid, theatrical free-for-all ... but that very chaos of creativity is what also makes it so much fun. Click here to read more about our round up of Halloween parties on Staten Island 2018 - Halloween restaurants Staten Island.

Brooklyn Halloween Parties - Brooklyn Halloween Restaurants - Brooklyn NYC Brooklyn Halloween Parties 2019 Halloween Parties in Brooklyn Heights, Park Slope & Other Neighborhoods in Brooklyn October 28, 2019 / Brooklyn Neighborhoods NYC / Brooklyn Restaurants / Bronx BLVD NYC. Halloween occurs on a Thursday this year. The Brooklyn Halloween party celebrations begin as early as Friday, October 25th running through the weekend, with some also on Halloween day itself. Halloween is one big costume party, where the theatrical side of people, is given a small opening. Halloween provides people the opportunity to create and play roles they have wanted to play, that the day-to-day keeps submerged. Is it their Doctor side or their Jekyll side - or something uncategorizable? In the photo at right are NYC Halloween partyers in an earlier year. Professional actors are paid to assume and perform roles, but on Halloween it's an all-volunteer, unpaid, theatrical free-for-all ... but that very chaos of creativity is what also makes it so much fun. Click here to read more about our round up of Brooklyn Halloween parties - Brooklyn Halloween restaurants.

Staten Island Things To Do - Staten Island Events - Staten Island NYC Staten Island Things To Do Staten Island Things To Do not far from - st george, snug harbor, west brighton, fort wadsworth, manor heights, clifton, mariners harbor, historic richmond town, south beach, tompkinsville, westerleigh, stapleton, port richmond and tottenville neighborhood on staten island nyc November 26, 2018 / Staten Island Neighborhoods / Staten Buzz NYC. Click here to view our Staten Island Things To Do / Staten Island Events. Click here for Staten Island farmers markets - green markets on Staten Island NYC.

IND GB _ Kavanaugh Epilogue: Onto the Midterms?

Collins' Speech, McConnell Cash & What will the Donald do if Republicans win the Senate?

Update October 7, 2018 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics & Government / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.

Susan Collins Speech - Honest ... but?

Susan Collins gave a speech explaining to the American people why she was going to vote to approve Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court. She reaffirmed what I have stated below, which that it was not a court proceeding, but rather a confirmation hearing which does not require a standard of being beyond reasonable doubt.

Collins went on to say that none of the people Christine Blasey Ford named as attendees at the party, could remember or verify their attendance at the party. And that she thought that to be fair to Brett she would vote for him, since the allegations of sexual assault were not confirmed. BUT she did not talk about any of the other allegations noted above, nor did the 'limited' investigation attempt to get at the root of those, including whether Kavanaugh had lied under oath.

Mitch McConnell's Gloating & Telling the Big Ones?

Mitch McConnell told Fox News that he was proud he and his fellow Republicans had stood up to the mob. The mob he was talking about was comprised of the American people that he often times uses as cover to justify the work he does for the people he is really serving. McConnell's campaign, or indirectly the McConnell's personally, accept oodles of cash from the super rich corporate donors, the Chinese with which his father-in-law does business, and the Russian oligarchs who are newcomers to the Mitch McConnell selling out of America program. Russian Oligarch companies donated $2.5 million to McConnell campaigns, $7.5 million to Republicans in general including Senator Lindsay Graham, and allegedly $30 million to the NRA, which is believed to have used that money in support of the Trump Campaign.

Thus, contrary to Mitch McConnell's claims to the contrary, in reality he stood up AGAINST the American people IN FAVOR the rich and powerful, including the Chinese and Russian Oligarchs, because Kavanaugh reportedly rules in favor of the corporate establishment over 80% of the time - against the American consumer, against American's health aka the environment and against American small business.

How Ineffective the Leaders of the Democratic Party?

Democratic Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, whose speeches sound like an undertaker at a funeral, told America they should vote. Grandma Nancy Pelosi continues telling the press she doesn't plan to impeach Trump. Some pundits say that if ever there were a president that the Founding Fathers had in mind for impeachment - Trump would be it.

These two remind me of British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain in 1939. Chamberlain ceded the Czech Sudetenland in order to appease Hitler. Appeasing narcissistic leaders never works. It only emboldens them. These two Democratic leaders seem to speak without any conviction in what they are saying. There's never any passion. Contrast that with Lindsay Graham's Oscar winning performance on Thursday, September 27th, 2018 when he lashed out at Democrats, and spun the conversation completely around from Kavanaugh's alleged sexual assault, to portraying Kavanaugh as the victim.

Neither of these two leaders seem to get much press because they are simply uncharismatic speakers. The reason these two bi-coastal pols are in the top leadership positions is because they are accomplished fundraisers, and they live and work with those who have access to large sums of cash. I've come to think of Schumer and Pelosi as accountants, because oftentimes that's what they sound like. And the Democrats missed what was going on in the heartland in 2016, because nobody from the nation's heartland holds any of the top Democratic party leadership posts.

Both of the major parties are owned by big money. The American voter will only be listened to when they stop getting their information from the multi-million dollar ad campaigns and skewed [or in Fox News case, propagandistic] reporting that feeds voters' decision-making process. The American voters must free themselves from the corporate broadcast press by using the internet to inform themselves, in the same fashion as Trump used Twitter to bypass them. There are reliable information sources out there that are doing real journalism designed to inform about what's really going on in this country, not 'journalism' designed to get ratings. But you need to look for them.

If the Democrats want to win the Senate they need to change the conversation to how Trump has failed the American people on healthcare insurance, how he has stolen $ trillion(s) from America's children through his tax plan that makes the rich richer by borrowing on their backs, how Trump has weakened America by ramping up the national deficit through his tax cuts and runaway spending on a bloated military designed for a prior age, and how Trump has weakened America's position in the world by his reckless trade disputes with our economic and military allies, [Trump appears to essentially be rebranding the American trade agreements so he can claim them as his own]. All the while befriending dictators, hostile foreign powers and weakening the position of democracies around the world. Trump has also appointed more justices into the court system than any modern president, and this trend will continue if the Democrats don't win back the Senate. The Democrats could also make a plea to the American people to reinstate some decency into what is now the Washington cesspool swirling around the Donald.

 

Best Argument for a Democratic Senate

The last and perhaps most important argument for urging voters to support Democratic Senate candidates is that if the Republicans win the Senate in November, Trump will likely fire Attorney General Jeff Sessions, as well as Rod Rosenstein and Robert Mueller.

Trump is also reportedly preparing to shuffle around the top generals in the U.S. Military. And without a Democratic Senate, the checks and balances regarding Trump's personnel changes will only function in the most limited manner.

And then things could get really weird. Like they got weird in 1933 in Germany?

 

Fox News & Trump Republicans: Portrayed Alleged Sex Offender as a Victim

Murdoch's Fox News, Trump and the Republicans have shown they are not respectful of women, as we saw in the Kavanaugh hearings.

Trump, Murdoch's Fox News and the Republicans spun the discussion about Kavanaugh completely around. They took it from a serious look at the alleged character failings of a nominee to a lifetime position on the Supreme Court, and made the alleged sex offender look like he was the one being victimized.

But Trump, Murdoch's Fox News and the Republicans didn't provide support for those claims - as Kavanaugh didn't submit to a lie detector test while the three alleged sexual offense victims did, he didn't agree to an FBI investigation which the three sex offense victims did, and in the end the Trump FBI 'limited' investigation seemed designed to give the Republicans cover when attacked for managing an unfair process that didn't seek to unearth the truth about the character of a man who now holds a lifetime position on the Supreme Court.

As noted by Susan Collins' comments above, Kavanaugh may be innocent as the claims are unsubstantiated. But that said, there were certainly many, far better candidates who did not have what appear to be the possibility of so many character flaws, and Kavanaugh's almost certain lack of impartiality.

The Donald & Adolph: Historic Parallels of Mass Manipulation

I am reminded of an Adolph Hitler quote here,

"I shall give a propagandist reason for starting the war [or whatever - like limiting an investigation], no matter whether it is plausible or not. The victor will not be asked afterwards, whether he told the truth or not. When starting and waging war it is not right that matters but victory. Close your hearts to pity. Act brutally ... The strongest man is right."

Hitler was the first and most effective user of modern media as a propaganda machine designed to mass manipulate people's perceptions, so he could enlist their support to do whatever he wanted.

How Hitler came to power is an under examined process, and this lack of awareness regarding how Hitler undermined the German democracy through the use of lies, deceits and mass media manipulation, is why the Democrats and corporate media are failing us now.

For more detail on how Rupert Murdoch uses his media properties as a propaganda machine - see our report series on Fox Fake News. Click here to learn more about Trump corruption

IND GB _ Kavanaugh: American Corporate Media Failure

Fox, ABC, NBC, CBS, NYT and WAPO all Sow Disinformation by Repeating Trump Attacks on Blasey Ford w/o Specifically Refuting all of Them

Only CBS's Late Show with Stephen Colbert had the Intelligence, Decency & took the Initiative to do so

October 4, 2018 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics & Government / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.

The six largest American media corporations unanimously added insult to injury, regarding Christine Blasey Ford's testimony, which alleged Brett Kavanaugh attempted to rape her several decades ago.

Every one of them repeated Trump's false attacks on her or showed video of Trump falsely mocking Christine Blasey Ford on Tuesday, October 2nd. Trump said Blasey Ford didn't know in which neighborhood this happened [Bethesda, Md], where the house party was [between Blasey Ford's house and the country club], when this happened [36 years ago], and was it upstairs or downstairs [at the top of the stairs].

One of the big news corporations said Blasey Ford was 100% sure it was Kavanaugh, but without providing added supporting evidence. Another outlet went on to replay and amplify multiple other of Trump fake news comments, again failing to directly refute all of the ones Trump had just made regarding Blasey Ford's testimony, which was less than a week ago. And a third major American news outlet noted that as recently as last week Trump had declared Blasey Ford gave credible testimony. But so what? Trump says lots of contradictory things. So now, like so many times before, Trump contradicts himself allowing his followers to believe what they want to believe, amplified by the American corporate media.

These large media corporations, with all their resources and well educated journalists, didn't have the decency, intellect, and didn't take the initiative to do a little - very little - fact checking of the less than week old testimony.

America has a broken public information system. And when the public information system is broken, the nation is like an aircraft that has lost its flight instrumentation. The nation is flying blind. We're flying blind and making bad decisions because we are not getting accurate readings on what's going on, and where we are.

Russian billionaires and foreign companies may soon have more pull with the Supreme Court than 'We The People'. It seems the Russians already have significant influence with many of our Senators and President - see more about this in the report below. Or see the report about Brett Kavanaugh Supreme Court Nominee, which as of this post, is available further down the front page.

Media Malpractice & Malfunction

Corporations Providing News to 80%+ of Americans Failed

Not one of the six major corporate news organizations 'SPECIFICALLY REFUTED' all of Trump's false claims regarding Blasey Ford's testimony.

ONLY The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, a late night comedy show, put in the effort to review Trump's allegations and accurately and specifically refute all of them.

The sad thing is that these same large media corporations appear to have been providing this same kind of parrot press journalism to the American public for years. The corporate media appear to repeat, amplify and thus validate so much of Donald Trump's disinformation. They have failed their audiences by not providing equal prominence and equal time / space to specifically and accurately contextualize or refute the innumerable false statements made by the Donald. Trump is wielding the bully pulpit, and the American corporate press is enabling him for their ratings.

I'm providing this example, to provide an illustration of what's going on. It gives you the chance to see the American corporate media failure in plain sight. I recommend to everyone to start using the internet more aggressively in order to obtain a fuller picture of what's going on in this nation, because watching American corporate broadcast TV doesn't even come close to cutting it these days.

 

Yes the System is Rigged, but Trump is NOT Fixing it

There are a lot of things broken in this country right now. Corporate money owns our legislators because they fund their expensive campaigns. And two prominent Republicans have recently publicly stated as much.

I. In an April 11, 2018 New Yorker report, Louisiana Republican Senator John Kennedy made a couple of comments in a hearing with Facebook Founder Mark Zuckerberg as follows.

"“There are going to be a whole bunch of bills introduced to regulate Facebook,” he told Zuckerberg. “It’s up to you whether they pass or not.”

And Kennedy added why it was up to Zuckerberg, when he stated that

"Zuckerberg could, Kennedy said, “spend ten million dollars on lobbyists and fight us ...”"

II. An April 25, 2018 story in Vox informs us that former South Caroline Congressman and current head of the Trump Administration's Office of Budget and Management, Mick Mulvaney told a conference of 1,300 bankers in Washington, D.C. the following,

"“We had a hierarchy in my office in Congress,” Mulvaney said. “If you’re a lobbyist who never gave us money, I didn’t talk to you. If you’re a lobbyist who gave us money, I might talk to you.”"

[Editor's Note: The main message here seems to be that if you're an ordinary citizen you can just go hang yourself because you don't stand a chance to get their attention.]

We, the American people, have allowed ourselves to become the last / least concern of our own representatives.

And many of the folks currently in office aren't going to fix it because they are some of the primary beneficiaries of the broken system. Not just the pols, but the large corporate media companies as well.

We are down to the Founding Fathers' last fail safe in our democratic system - the 'We The People' part. Meaning the American people need to get involved in grassroots organizations, make an effort to do peer to peer mass dissemination of accurate or more complete / contextualized information, and help sign up people to vote and then help them exercise the power of the vote.

FALSE EQUIVOCATION: A Word on the Kavanaugh Confirmation

It's a Job Interview, NOT Court Proceeding, for a LIFETIME Position

The Republicans have been saying innocent until proven guilty - but that is for court proceedings, not job interviews in Senate hearings. Kavanaugh's and Blasey Ford's testimony in front of the Senate was a hearing, where they are considering appointing a job applicant to a lifetime position, while serious allegations about Kavanaugh's character and behavior are still UNRESOLVED.

An appointment to the Supreme Court is for a LIFETIME.

The wide number of serious allegations regarding Kavanaugh's behavior will impugn the integrity and impartiality of the Supreme Court, should he be confirmed.

If Kavanaugh is not confirmed he will not go to jail and he will still have his job. So the allegations against Kavanaugh do not need to be proven beyond a reasonable doubt, because the only repercussions are that he doesn't get the job he wants and keeps the one he has.

Senators should be urged to vote against Kavanaugh's confirmation as there are too many different, UNRESOLVED, serious allegations from a wide variety of what appear to be credible sources regarding Brett Kavanaugh's character. How can a Senator justify the confirmation of Kavanaugh for a LIFETIME position on the Supreme Court without further investigation of these serious issues?

The allegations include alcoholism, physical aggression, sex offenses, compulsive GAMBLING, partisan legal interpretations, lying and possible financial troubles.

Furthermore these allegations appear to be coming from so many different, seemingly credible sources, that they cannot be dismissed with only a week long FBI investigation.

The 'limited' FBI investigation seems to be another smoke screen put up by the Donald for his blockbuster ratings reality TV show: The Unreal Presidency of Donald J. Trump.

A vote for Brett Kavanaugh is a vote to impugn the integrity of the Supreme Court. Which I suspect is exactly what the 'red' state Republicans' Russian paymasters want.

For more detail of Russian money / influence with some of the Republican Senators [Mitch McConnell, Lindsay Graham, Marco Rubio] playing key roles in these hearings, see the report about Brett Kavanaugh Supreme Court Nominee, which as of this post, is available further down the front page.

ALL except SB

Issues of Character - Brett Kavanaugh - Supreme Court Nominee Kavanaugh: Have Republicans Abandoned Family Values and Law & Order? Are Trump & Republicans Rushing the Nomination of a man who may be a Lying, Partisan, Alcoholic, Sex Offender with a Gambling Problem? October 2, 2018 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics & Government / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC. Over the past couple of weeks, we've been treated to a new season of a made-for-TV series, the Unreal Presidency of Donald J. Trump. The Donald is the star TV shock jock protagonist. He is an elderly man who appears hell bent on seeing just how far he can exercise executive privilege to serve his own ends, before some of the other 320 million people in the nation will actually stand up to stop him. There are many antagonists including those who have filed a lawsuit accusing Trump of violating the Emoluments Clause of the U.S. Constitution [using the office of the presidency for personal profit] and there are many grassroots Democrats who are pushing their representatives on the idea that Trump was exactly the kind of president the Founding Fathers had in mind when they included the Impeachment process in the Constitution. The past and current episodes of the Unreal Presidency of D.J. Trump have been a made-for-TV-News ratings sensation. The current episodes have been focused on Trump's rush to confirm Brett Kavanaugh, a nominee with hair-raising disqualifications, to the Supreme Court. The Trump propaganda machine - friend Rupert Murdoch's Fox Fake News - has been the ratings winner of this taxpayer funded drama. And Murdoch's Fox News proudly declared that on Friday, September 28, 2018 with the following headline [see above], "Fox News dominates ratings on coverage of dramatic Kavanaugh-Ford hearing." Murdoch's Fox Fake News uses red, white and blue iconography all over its broadcast studio, calling themselves 'America's Newsroom'. Their hijacking of America's colors and flag, is reminiscent of how the Nazis hijacked German nationalism in the 1930's for their own ends. The Nazis claimed to be the one true patriotic party of Germany. The Appearance of Due Process for TV Cameras? The reality comes from Trump and the Republicans using Executive Privilege to withhold critical documents from the Senate, also limiting the time Senators were given to question Kavanaugh, and at first denying an authorized investigation into some of the most egregious allegations that have arisen against Trump nominee Brett Kavanaugh. Trump's opposition, the minority political party in both the Senate and House, want access to documents surrounding one of the two roles that Kavanaugh played in the Bush Administration [2003 - 2006], when it is believed Kavanaugh ignored or supported illegal torture, illegal surveillance of the American people, and possibly worked with documents Kavanaugh knew to be obtained illegally. What's more, the allegations surrounding Kavanaugh's character seems serious enough to disqualify him, including lying under oath, attempted rape, alcoholism and that he has a gambling problem. These allegations, if true, would impugn the integrity of the Supreme Court, as an impartial body that deliberates over the laws that govern our society. Supreme Court Justice Nominee or Supreme A_ _ Hole? The photo at right shows Kavanaugh at the hearing, demonstrating some of his famous anger management issues. His lying about his inability to control himself is at the core of the Senate's reluctance to confirm him - as he is alleged to have gotten into a bar dispute after repeatedly drinking too much, to have repeatedly sexually offended several women where alcohol was also involved, and to have erupted in rage following a gambling bout. CLICK here to read the rest of our report about issues of character - Brett Kavanaugh - Supreme Court nominee.

IND GB _ Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 11/9

New Documentary Film by the Only Pundit in America to Predict that Trump Would Win the Presidency in 2016

September 21, 2018 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics & Government / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.

When Michael Moore talks, I tend to listen.

Why?

Because he's the only national pundit in America who predicted Trump would win the presidency in 2016.

In a July 2016 editorial, independent filmmaker Michael Moore explained the contributing psychological and cultural factors upon which his predictions for a Trump victory were based. The tenets for much of his underlying political analysis, still hold true today, and is explored more fully in his new film.

 

Moore, a Working Class Journalist, Probes the Psychology of Trump, Trump's Followers, and the Mainstream Media Folks

Michael Moore is sometimes typecast as a liberal, but his working class credentials have never been challenged. The liberal label may have arisen because one of his earlier films, Roger & Me, called out the CEO of General Motors for exporting American jobs, thus shafting of the American working class, of which Moore was a member back in the 1990's. And another of Moore's films, Fahrenheit 9/11, attacked George W. Bush and the American corporate media for their inept response to the 911 attacks. But labels these days, are used a means by which those who wish to discredit, to shout down people who offer alternative narratives that differ from their own.

Moore shows little tolerance for both conservatives and liberals, as he believes those in charge of the both the liberal and conservative media and political apparatus are living in insulated seclusion from the rest of us. Moore brought this point home in the DemocracyNow.org interview, by talking about mundane TV shows watched by Trump supporters, that he said are not watched by most of the people delivering the corporate media news. He used the TV shows people watch, as a means to exemplify the cultural disconnect, between those who present the news and those who watch it.

The example he used was the importance of the TV show The Apprentice, in creating Donald Trump. He told us that every week the Donald would fire someone from the staff that was nearly universally despised, elating the audience, who Moore opined, worked with similar characters at their own jobs.

Moore doesn't work for a corporation, nor is he sponsored by big corporate money, so he seems about as independent these days, as we're going to get, because nobody owns him.

 

Moore Appears to Produce Documentary Films to Inform

Michael Moore dresses like a guy who came in off the street. He seems to forgo the celebrity narcissism of TV news in favor of spending his time gathering, thinking about, and processing the information he collects. By contrast, Rupert Murdoch's mouthpieces of Fox News, Sean Hannity and Tucker Carlson, exhibit an almost feminine broadcast appearance, and they appear to promote the pols the billionaire favors [who it seems will 'work with Murdoch' aka do his bidding], while shouting down those pols who won't do what Murdoch wants. This leads me to wonder whether these two obsequios Murdochian pundits spend more time in primping themselves in makeup - than they spend time trying to get their facts straight.

This comparison is a metaphor for where we are today in terms of news and politics. The news of today seems more like a celebrity shock jock ratings contest, rather than what it should be - a contest to become the most trustworthy, research driven, investigative, fact finding, fact checking information source available. Similarly the politicians in government today seem more interested in playing roles in politically polarized public theater performances, like the Donald did throughout the 2016 campaign, than in devising and negotiating public policy for the good of the people and the nation.

As for Moore, he seems a bit old school, like one of the American newsmen of the past, who is interested in afflicting the comfortable, and in comforting the afflicted.

 

DemocracyNow.Org Interviews Moore about Fahrenheit 11/9

On Friday afternoon I tuned in to DemocracyNow.org and found Michael Moore, in all of his unorthodoxy, talking about his new movie: Fahrenheit 11/9. As previously mentioned, in 2004 Moore created a film Fahrenheit 9/11 about George W. Bush - so the title for this new film, Fahrenheit 11/9, flips the digits of the numerical date, to reflect the day after the Trump election victory on November 9th [11/9] 2016.

The news analysis and insight that Michael Moore delivers may not be all encompassing [nothing ever is], but based on his DemocracyNow.org interview, the new film seems to provide a fresh, insightful perspective. Moore seems to probe beyond the superficial, into the use of personal and mass psychology by Donald Trump, who over the past couple of decades, Moore has personally encountered multiple times on the talk show circuit. Moore also probes the psychological and cultural yearnings of Trump's American supporters, and makes startling analogies to other nations and other periods in history. Moore intimated in the interview that he's warning people how fragile a government with a just and fair democratic system really is, especially in the hands of a celebrity salesman.

You can view the Moore interview about his new movie, Fahrenheit 11/9, on DemocracyNow.org. Moore's documentary film opened in thousands of theaters across the nation on Friday, September 21, 2018. It only grossed $3 million the first weekend [it was #8], so you might want to see it sooner, rather than later, as it may not be in theaters very long.

ALL _ No IDC NY Wins Big & Cuomo Buys Back In

No IDC NY Supported Candidates Won Six of Nine Senate Contests & Cuomo's Donors Spent $21 per Vote

September 14, 2018 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYS Politics & Government / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.

Andrew Cuomo and his wealthy corporate backers appear to have won him a third term as NYS Governor. The win reportedly cost them over $21 million – thus reducing the the return on their political investment by requiring a significant upfront payment.

But you needn’t worry about Cuomo or his wealthy corporate backers, as campaign contributions are reportedly very good investments, providing returns that range from modest to excessive. Do a search for studies conducted in 2004 by Harvard University, and in 2017 by Kellogg Graduate Business School at Northwestern for greater detail.

The photo at right shows voters on Thursday evening, September 13th, signing in to cast their votes.

 

Cuomo Defeats Nixon - Voting Interest Nearly Triples vs 2014

With 99% of the precincts reporting, Andrew Cuomo won 975,552 votes to Cynthia Nixon’s 511,585 votes – that’s 65.6% for Cuomo and 34.4% for Nixon. Nixon won many of the counties surrounding Albany, Tompkins County and Lewis County near Syracuse.

Cuomo won the rest of the state, but won by smaller margins in Manhattan and Brooklyn, while winning by wider margins in the other boroughs. Please note that the September 13, 2018 election totals and percentages shown in this story were reported by the New York Times this morning. The contextual and historical figures and percentages were reported by a multitude of other generally reliable sources.

In the photo at right is Andrew Cuomo marching in the June LGBT parade in the West Village of Manhattan in a prior year.

Had Cuomo only won as many votes as he'd secured in the 2014 primary against Zephyr Teachout, Nixon would have trounced him. In 2014 Andrew Cuomo received 327,150 votes to Zephyr Teachout's tally of 180,336 votes, with the percentages reflecting about the same as this year [64% / 36%] - but the ad spending by the Cuomo campaign was up significantly and so were the vote tallies on both sides. Thus in 2018, almost three times as many voters showed up at the polls during the primary election, but as you will see below - that's still only about 10% of the total potential electorate.

Cuomo Outspends Nixon by 8:1 - Pays $21 per Vote

Andrew Cuomo’s campaign reportedly spent over $21 million this year, versus Cynthia Nixon’s $2.5 million. Thus Cuomo outspent Nixon by over eight to one. And Cuomo's campaign spending in the primary of 2014 was reportedly under $10 million, thus translating into a doubling of what corporations and wealthy donors must pay to keep Cuomo in office.

 

Campaign Contributions by the Rich Few, Beat the Multitude of Small Contributions of the Middle and Working Classes

Nixon reportedly received donations from 43,000 individual contributors [reportedly a state record], while Cuomo received donations from well under 4,000 contributors. This is why campaign finance reform will never happen with the same people in office [regardless of whether they are Democrats or Republicans] – because while the system may not be working for the people, it is certainly working for the pols and their donors.

The way things work today - pols appear to receive campaign contributions from corporate / wealthy donors who appear to essentially ‘buy’ the office. And then the corporate / wealthy donors appear to be able to pass or block legislation with the help of the pols they supported. As for the government by the people and for the people – well that only happens if the people pay attention to what’s going on, get involved in the political process, and show up to vote.

A quote that was attributed to Jefferson, appears to have originated from Reagan, seems appropriate here: A people that believes they may be ignorant and free, believes in something that never was and never will be.

In the photo at right are Jumaane Williams, candidate for Lieutenant Governor and Cynthia Nixon, candidate for Governor at a June rent rally on the steps of the NYC Public Library on 5th Avenue just south of 42nd Street.

The Real News is How Few Participate in our Democracy

Approximately 1.5 million New Yorkers showed up to vote yesterday – in a state with a population of nearly 20 million. In the 2016 census report, 15.7 million New Yorkers were eligible voting age citizens – so about 10% of the potential electorate decided this electoral primary outcome. Honestly it’s shameful, especially when you take note of the fact that people in Russia and China are literally risking their lives / freedom to enable people participation in the process of choosing those who make the laws, establish and enforce public policy and control the government apparatus.

NYS Lieutenant Governor Race - Hochul Defeats Williams - Upstate Beats NYC

The Lieutenant Governor’s race was closer, as Jumaane Williams put in a solid performance winning 640,530 votes to Kathy Hochul’s 731,459 votes. Hochul won 53.3% of the vote to Jumaane Williams’s 46.7% of the vote. Williams won big in Brooklyn [his home], Manhattan, Columbia and Tompkins Counties, losing the rest of the state.

What I found surprising here, is that the Bronx which is mostly Latin and African American, went for Hochul instead of Williams who is an African American. I surmised that this was likely made possible through the efforts of the establishment Democratic party apparatus, which is controlled by Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr.

 

NYS Attorney General Race - James Defeats Teachout & Maloney who Split the Upstate White Vote

Letitia James won the Attorney General position, beating out Zephyr Teachout and Sean Patrick Maloney. James received 578,412 votes to Teachout’s 441,567 votes and Maloney’s 356,602 votes. The percentages were James with 41.6%, Teachout with 31% and Maloney with 25% of the vote. James won all of the boroughs of New York City, the two counties on Long Island, as well as Westchester and Rockland counties [the latter two counties are suburban outreaches of NYC].

Teachout won most of the eastern part of the state running from north of Westchester to the Canadian border – including most of the counties around Albany, while Maloney won most of the western part of the state, and a couple of counties just north of Westchester. Teachout and Maloney appear to have split the upstate White vote.

In the photo at right, Letitia James, candidate for NYS Attorney General at a community function in Queens, earlier this year.

 

No IDC NY Candidates Trounce Most of the Former IDC Members

One of the big issues to be decided during this primary season was the fate of the nine Democrats who had caucused with the Republicans, thereby giving the Republicans majority control of the NYS Senate. Eight of the senators became members of the Independent Democratic Caucus [IDC] which was founded by Bronx NYS Senator Jeffrey Klein, only a year or two into Cuomo’s first term. The creation of the IDC was said to be with the tacit approval of Andrew Cuomo, so that the NYS Governor could prevent the Democratic agenda from becoming too progressive.

Prior to the beginning of the 2018 primary season, an all-volunteer group formed, calling themselves the No IDC NY. The No IDC NY set as its mission, to dislodge those Democrats who had caucused with the Republicans. The No IDC NY effort proved fairly successful, as six of the nine Democrats who had caucused with the Republicans, were defeated. The following is a short tally of those races.

In the photo at right, Zephyr Teachout endorsing Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, just as Teachout was making her candidacy for the office of NYS Attorney General known.

 

Queens NYS Senate Races

In the NYS Senate in Queens. No IDC NY supported candidate John Liu defeated incumbent Tony Avella in Queens with 53% to 47% of the vote. No IDC NY supported candidate Jessica Ramos trounced incumbent Jose Peralta with 55% to 45% of the vote.

Manhattan NYS Senate Races

In the NYS Senate in Manhattan. No IDC NY supported candidate Robert Jackson handily defeated incumbent Marisol Alcantera in the Washington Heights / Inwood area with 56% versus 39% of the vote.

Bronx NYS Senate Races

In the NYS Senate in the Bronx. No IDC NY supported candidate Alessandra Biaggi decisively defeated the IDC Founder incumbent Jeffrey Klein winning 54% of the vote to Klein’s 46%.

Brooklyn & Staten Island NYS Senate Races

In the NYS Senate in Brooklyn & Staten Island. No IDC NY supported candidate Zellnor Myrie defeated incumbent Jesse Hamilton 54% to 46%. But both incumbent Diane Savino of Staten Island and incumbent Simcha Felder of Brooklyn handily defeated their No IDC NY supported challengers. Incumbent Savino won 67% of the vote to No IDC NY supported candidate Jasmine Robinson’s 21% of the vote and incumbent Simcha Felder won 66% of the vote to No IDC NY supported candidate Blake Morris’s 34% of the vote.

Upstate NYS Senate Races

In the NYS Senate in Upstate NY. No IDC NY supported candidate Rachel May won 52% of the vote to incumbent David Valesky’s 48%. But incumbent David Carlucci held onto his seat with 54% of the vote to No IDC NY supported candidate Julie Goldberg’s 46%.

Election Day Thursday 9/13 - Please Vote

September 12, 2018 / Manhattan Neighborhoods / Manhattan Politics & Government / Manhattan Buzz NYC.

The New York State federal offices (Congress) primary election is tomorrow, Thursday September 13th.

The polling booths will be open from 6 am to 9 pm Thursday.

To find your poll location click on the graphic at right.

Once on the website, input your address, and then click the icon to the right of it to get the results of the search. You have to look for the super-tiny icon near the lower right corner of the screen.

Remember that if you really want things to change, then you can't keep electing the same representatives.

1464 is Cuomo Nixon ALL but SB

1462 is Trump Ahle 2 only GB

Andrew Cuomo's Democratic Party Unfairly Attacks Cynthia Nixon Has the Democratic Party Tipped the Scales ... Again? Democratic Machine Releases Direct Mail Ad, Falsely Attacking Cynthia Nixon September 11, 2018 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics & Government / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.y A Democratic Machine Big Lie? Over the weekend, the NYS Democratic Party Committee, sent out a mailer which falsely claims that, "... inexperienced Cynthia Nixon. Who won't stand strong for our Jewish communities." The claim in this Democratic Party mailer is akin to Hitler's Big Lie. Hitler's Big Lie, according to Wikipedia is, "... [Hitler's] 1925 book Mein Kampf, [talks] about the use of a lie so "colossal" that no one would believe that someone "could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously". It's a big lie because Cynthia Nixon is a mother to three Jewish children with whom she attends a local synagogue. Andrew Cuomo's Implausible Denial? Governor Andrew Cuomo, when queried about who was behind this 'dirty politics' mailer replied on Sunday in Manhattan, "I didn't know about the mailer. I haven't seen the mailer." The New York Times wasn't buying it. After having endorsed Cuomo less than a week earlier, on September 4th, the Times Editorial Board in a September 9th opinion said the following, "Sorry, Mr. Cuomo, but that strains credulity." They went on to note that, "Mr. Cuomo dominates the state Democratic Party. It acts ethically or abominably at his direction, or at the very least, with his campaign's blessing." Byron Brown - NYS Democratic Party Chair & Cuomo Ally It's worth noting that the new Chair of the New York State Democratic [Party] Committee is Byron Brown. Brown was appointed to the post on May 23, 2016, and is a Cuomo political confidant. So it would seem Cuomo's ignorance of the mailer is either extreme incompetence - or more likely - an outright lie. Let's briefly examine the facts. Democratic Party Chair Byron Brown was born and raised in Queens in the 1950's, as was Andrew Cuomo. Brown went on to become the Mayor of Buffalo from 2005 - 2017, and as early as 2006, when Andrew Cuomo began campaigning for NYS Attorney General, Byron Brown was described in a November 23, 2006 New York Times report as a "political confidant" of Andrew Cuomo's. A May 30, 2006 report in the Buffalo News states that Byron, "... seconded Cuomo's nomination [for NYS Attorney General] at the convention on May 30, 2006." CLICK here to read the rest of our report on Cuomo's Democratic Party Wrongfully Attacks Nixon / Andrew Cuomo Takes the Low Road.

PART II. Is Donald Trump a Hostage of the Russian Czar Putin? Continuation from Section I of - Trump Presidency Is the Donald a Hostage of Russian Murderers, Capitalists & Thieves? Is the Trump & 'Bambino' Family so Criminally or Financially Compromised, that They are Betraying America? Updated September 3 - August 23, 2018 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC. Continued. For PART I - click here BENEDICT DONALD: TRUMP BETRAYAL OF AMERICA & DEMOCRACY WORK IN PROGRESS - CONSIDER EVERYTHING BELOW AN OPINION, HEARSAY OR RUMOR UNTIL I CAN FINISH FACT CHECKING & EDITING Section II - Trump Presidency Is the Don a Cheap Flim Flammin' Con & America's First Mob President? In Part I I showed that there were about a dozen or so contacts made between what appears the Trump & 'Bambino' Crime Family, Trump close associates and top Trump Campaign officials during the Trump presidential campaign of 2016. There were eight in that report and I have yet to add to the list: 1) Trump lawyer / fixer Michael Cohen's two trips to the Czech Republic where he reportedly met with Putin associates, one of the alleged airplane hangar meets on October 30, 2016 at a Las Vegas hangar controlled by one of Trump's biggest campaign donors, Sheldon Adelson during which time both Trump's and Russian Oligarch Rybolovlev's planes were there at the same time which they said was 'coincidence'. They were also claimed to 'coincidence' in Charlotte, NC on 11/4/18 in same hangar. I went on to show how Donald Trump then began passing legislation which stole $1.5 trillion or more from America's children, by borrowing money through the federal government to by paid by them to pay for a huge tax cut favoring the wealthy. I also noted that there were numerous deregulatory efforts Trump has made to hurt the environment, safety standards and universal healthcare that prior generations fought hard to enact, and that he has weakened America's position in the world through attempts to cripple the NATO alliance, destroy trade deals with the free democracies of the world, and has significantly reduced America's sphere of influence by undermining the free press and democratic processes in nations around the world. Putin, the Russian Mob & the Russian Oligarchs aka Kleptocrats? I then went on to talk about how Russia evolved / devolved following the Fall of the Berlin Wall into a struggling democracy that soon became what appears to have been a kleptocracy, where many - perhaps all - Russian Oligarchs bought protection for themselves as they consolidated their grip on what once were the Russian 'peoples' assets which included large natural resources companies and financial / banking entities. When Putin came to power in 2000, following Yeltsin's fall, Putin attempted to reign in the free-wheeling, free-stealing kleptocrats, by turning the tables on them so that instead of them buying protection from independents, they had to rely on the Russian state - aka Vladimir Putin. The deal seemed to be that many of the Russian Oligarchs could keep a good part of their ill-gotten gains, but on the condition that when Putin called them into service for Russia - he expected them to comply. Putin was also reported to have good relations with the Russian mob, which is reported at least at one point to have had 300,000 people in its employ, including in America in the Brighton Beach neighborhood of Brooklyn and in Atlanta, Georgia. One of the key players died in 2009. What I didn't yet include was that the Russian mob in the 1990's got involved in pump and run stock schemes during the internet stock bubble, and that one of those convicted in connection with one of the schemes, later became a Trump Soho associate or possibly partner. It is at this point that Felix Sater and the now defunct Bayrock enter, buying and selling apartments to the Russians and other seeming kleptocrats from places like Kazakstan where the BTA Bank loaned money to what appeared to be shell corporations which bought Trump Soho apartments. Putin Betrayal of Russian Revolution Ideals? Crime syndicated continues. Oligarchs pay for protection. Putin changes it where they get to keep the cash for protection, but they report to / through him. Russian mob had been scamming Wall Street in 1990's. Pump n/ dump. Trump seemed to do the same w/ casinos. Trump Soho: Shill Ivanka & Don Jr. Pumping Up Trump Organization Condos? There was a lawsuit accusing Ivanka and Donald Trump Jr. of hyping the sold status of Trump Soho far beyond the reality in order to facilitate sales, but the Manhattan District Attorney's office of Cyrus Vance Jr. decided not to prosecute and there was a campaign contribution of $10,000 alleged to have been made by Trump law firm Kasowitz. Both deny quid pro quo wrongdoing. How many times do we hear about these 'coincidences'? The Oligarch Envelope Around the Seemingly Corrupt Trump Administration I then described some of the oligarchs, but have yet to add some of the key players like Blavatnik, Fridman, Aven and Khan [Alfi Bank & Access Techno] - some or all of whom appear to have been indirect intermediaries between Putin's Russia and Don the Con's Administration. Russian Oligarch Blavatnik reportedly was either planning or did go into business w/ Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin in a Hollywood deal. Fridman's Access Technologies donated over $1 million to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell whose wife, Elaine Chao the Transportation Secretary, was once on Murdoch's Fox Fake News board. Robert Mercer became a hedge fund billionaire, bought into Breitbart and Cambridge Analytica and National Enquirer where he allegedly bought negative Trump stories to keep from the public. His yacht also spotted next to Rybolovlev's in Palm Beach in late 2016? need to confirm dates / location. The Trump Family & Many People in the Administration Appear to be Financially Compromised by Virtue of Payments from Russians The next and last section of Part I is a short description of many of the Trump family members, friends including the Murdochs, campaign officials and Trump Administration players - many of whom appear to have been compromised by the Russians through the use of mob-like payments, which seem to include some measure of Godfather-like loyalty. A loyalty promise that FBI Director Jame Comey and Jeff Sessions refused to make. Former FBI Director James Comey & Current Attorney General Jeff Sessions Keep Their Promise to the American People These two men swore loyalty to the rule of law and the United States Constitution and the American People - which at present both men appear to have kept. CLICK here to read the rest of our report about whether a financially compromised president who appears a hostage of the Russian mob-like kleptocrats who appear to be possible murderers and thieves of the Russian people's wealth.

ALL _ Bx1489 _ Jeff Klein's IDC: Republicans Running as Dems?

The Independent Democratic Caucus Aligns with Republicans which Enables Republicans to Control the NYS Senate

Updated September 7, 2018 / March 21, 2018 / Bronx Neighborhoods & Bronx News / Bronx Politics / News Analysis & Opinion / Bronx Buzz NYC.

There's an NYS State primary election this month. The primaries will be held on Thursday, September 13th; instead of on Tuesday, September 11th, in recognition of 911. And the general election will be held on Tuesday, November 6th.

As in any year, the elections are important, but perhaps made more so this year, by what appears to be the anarchistic destruction and disrespect, for our government institutions and processes, by Republican President Donald Trump.

Trump Republicans: Debt Bomb Deficits Levied on America's Children to Enrich the Richest?

The Donald passed a stimulus tax bill that is expected to increases the deficit by $1.5 trillion over the next ten years, and there are some pundits who put the figure higher. He and the Republicans passed this budget busting stimulus tax bill, while the economy was operating at levels considered above a full employment economy [5% unemployment is considered standard / normal] and at a time when wages were rising over 2%.

Inflation above 2% is considered to be detrimental to economic stability by the Federal Reserve, so stimulating the economy while it's at full employment with rising wages is about the opposite of what makes sense, especially when you consider the funding for it is coming from America's children and most of the benefits for it are going to the wealthiest people on the planet. We posted a report analyzing the Trump Tax Reform Bill slightly before it was finalized, which includes a lot of facts and figures to help provide context to better understand what was in the bill they passed.

The Independent Democratic Caucus Aligns with NYS Senate Republicans & Gives Them Control

In 2010 / 2011 NYS Senator Jeffrey Klein broke away from the Democratic Party and formed the Independent Democratic Caucus which aligns with the Republican Party, thereby giving them control of the NYS Senate. The effect of this is that bills passed by the Democratic controlled NYS Assembly are indefinitely tabled, or in lay man's terms pretty much killed, in the Republican-controlled NYS Senate. The Republicans control the NYS Senate, because eight NYS senators who run as Democrats [IDC Independent Democratic Caucus], either vote with or kill bills with the Republicans.

Democratic NYS Assembly Bills Effectively Killed by IDC

According to the Democratic Senate Conference, the Republican controlled NYS Senate - with the help of their Republicans running as Democrats allies - have effectively killed one education bill providing full day kindergarten funding, three wage / leave bills, four voting rights bills including the allowance of early voting, four immigration bills including one related to the DREAM Act, four housing bills including several pertaining to NYC rent laws that help renters, three criminal justice bills including creation of correctional ombudsman and sealing of marijuana possession records [as marijuana is rapidly being legalized in states across the country], one related to LGBTQ issues, and six regarding healthcare, several of which pertain to women's reproductive rights.

The IDC Deception: REPUBLICANS RUNNING AS DEMOCRATS?

The net effect of this is that Democrats are, in a sense, cheated or tricked out of their majority by what appears to be Republicans running as Democrats. The Independent Democratic Caucus or IDC includes Jeffrey Klein of the Bronx, who founded the IDC, David Valesky of Oneida and Madison Counties in upstate New York, David Carlucci of Rockland and Westchester Counties, Diane Savino of Staten Island / Brooklyn, Tony Avella of Queens, Jose Peralta of Queens, Jesse Hamilton of Brooklyn, and Marisol Alcantera of Washington Heights / Manhattan. Simcha Felder of Brooklyn also runs as a Democrat and caucuses with the Republicans.

The following is a list of challengers, eight of which I obtained off the NoIDCNY.org website. For some reason Blake Morris - Simcha Felder's challenger - was not included on their website. I have just contacted them to find out why.

• Jessica Ramos is challenging Jose Peralta in District 13 in Queens.
• John Liu is challenging Tony Avella* in District 11 in Queens.
• Robert Jackson is challenging Marisol Alcantera in District 31 in Washington Heights / Inwood / Manhattan.
• Alessandra Biaggi is challenging Jeff Klein in District 34 in the Bronx.
• Zellnor Myrie is challenging Jesse Hamilton in District 20 in Brooklyn.
• Blake Morris is challenging Simcha Felder in District 17 in Brooklyn.
• Jasmine Robinson is challenging Diane Savino in District 23 in Brooklyn / Staten Island.
• Julie Goldberg is challenging David Carlucci in District 38 in nearby upstate New York.
• Rachel May is challenging David Valesky in District 53 in upstate New York.

* A Word About NYS Senator Tony Avella as He Appears to be a Real Independent

Of all of the IDC candidates listed above, NYS Senator Tony Avella deserves special consideration. NYS Senator Avella CHALLENGED Republican Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Queens Country Democratic Party Chairman Joe Crowley when both of these men, and many in their parties, supported real estate developments in Flushing Meadows Corona Park. Queens Borough President Melinda Katz took a position that appeared somewhere between supportive of the developments to - at best - indifferent.

NYS Senator Avella advocated on behalf of the community to thwart billionaire and mega millionaire real estate developers from grabbing Queens parkland - AND WON. In doing this, NYS Senator Tony Avella, appears to be more like a Maverick or Independent, resembling legislators like deceased U.S. Senator John McCain (Republican) and U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (Democrat), both of whom have charted their own path through party-dominated politics.

Avella is an important independent voice in the Queens, NYC and NYS community, which the Democrats in his district will have to decide whether or not to keep.

• CLICK here to read the rest of our report about the NYS Senator Jeff Klein IDC Independent Democratic Caucus & NOIDCNY - Republicans running as Democrats.

ALL but SB _ 1461 _ Is Donald Trump a Hostage of Russian Murderers, Capitalists & Thieves?

Is the Trump & Bambino Crime Family so Criminal or Financially Compromised, that They are Betraying America?

Updated August 27 - August 23, 2018 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.

The first part of this report will show you some of the many known Trump family ‘social’ interactions with key Russian Oligarchs [Kleptocrats?] close to Putin, and of the Trump campaign officials and consultants known meetings with Czarist President Vladimir Putin’s government officials.

Do Americans really think all of the following interactions were just coincidence? Just a couple of billionaire women and campaign officials just have a little old fashioned czarist fun?

Part I: Trump Family & Campaign Russian Interactions 2016

I can’t help wonder whether Ivanka Trump and her Russian-Oligarch-loving friend Wendi Deng Murdoch [Rupert Murdoch’s ex-wife rumored in March of 2016 to be Putin's girlfriend (denied much later by Deng)], weren’t conduits through which information passed between then candidate Donald J. Trump and Russian czarist President, Vladimir Putin?

Why hasn’t the FBI called them in for interrogations about what they may know, based on their numerous interactions with the Oligarchs throughout the presidential campaign season of 2016?

Why haven't they called in billionaire propagandist Rupert Murdoch who controls Fox Fake New, the Wall Street Journal and the NY Post - all of which unabashedly promoted the Trump candidacy with distorted, and at times false news reporting, as well as the suppression of stories relevant to the election? Murdoch was reported to speak somewhere between daily and weekly to Trump, following the election, as was his surrogate pseudo anchorman Sean Hannity. Both had business with the federal government and - as far as I know - neither has registered as a lobbyist, even though both men appear to have profited handsomely since the election of Trump as a result of Trump policies, FCC rules changes and for Hannity a new multi-million loan agreement with far more generous terms.

Trump Family & Campaign Officials Hold Nearly a Dozen Meetings with Russians Close to Putin Throughout 2016

On March 2, 2016 Rupert Murdoch, who controls two of America’s six largest media content companies, tweeted that the GOP “would be mad not to unify” around Trump, if he’s the Republican nominee. Murdoch controls the Fox News, WSJ & NY Post propaganda machine that catapulted Trump into the Oval Office in November 2016, along with the help of the Russians.

Some of Known 2016 Interactions of Trump Family & Campaign w/ Putin's Russia

1. In March [NEED TO VERIFY THAT IT WAS 2016 & THAT IT WAS RYBOLOVLEV'S or another Oligarch's] yacht was spotted in same harbor / next to Bob Mercer, a Trump friend. Bob Mercer, publisher of the National Enquirer, was recently given immunity. Mercer had bought and sat on a story damaging to Trump regarding an alleged extra marital affair. Did Mercer, who reportedly had a stake in Cambridge Analytica, meet with Rybolovlev on behalf of Trump?

Are Ivanka Trump & Wendi Deng Murdoch Shills for Billionaires / Oligarchs?

2.a. Less than a month later, on March 31, 2016 US Weekly, a gossip magazine, reported that the former wife of Rupert Murdoch, Wendi Deng Murdoch, was dating Vladimir Putin. Two days later, on April 2, 2016 Murdoch’s former wife, Wendi Deng Murdoch, was seen on a boat associated with the yacht of Roman Abramovich, a Russian Oligarch considered among Putin’s closest ‘friends’. Abramovich's wife, introduced to Ivanka years earlier by Deng, is reported to be a friend of Ivanka's.

2.b. A month later, on May 2, 2016, Wendi Deng Murdoch was seen at the Met Gala along with her close friend Ivanka Trump. Wendi Deng Murdoch was, at the time, rumored to be Putin’s girlfriend, and she had named Ivanka Trump as the trustee for Wendi Deng Murdoch’s children's $300 million trust, which was reported in 2015 to hold numerous shares in Rupert Murdoch's 21st Century Fox. Ivanka served as a trustee for Deng until December of 2016 when she stepped down.

In 2014, following the Murdoch’s divorce, Rupert Murdoch reportedly accused his ex-wife Wendi Deng Murdoch of being a Chinese spy. This appears to have been corroborated by U.S. Intelligence, which warned Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner that Deng was a spy, following Trump’s Electoral College victory in December of 2016.

3. In May of 2016 Roger Stone, a long time friend of Donald Trump [attended two of three weddings], who had worked for him on prior occasions, met with a Russian who offerred him dirt on Clinton. Stone initially denied the meeting took place, before admitting it. According to Wikipedia, two Stone associates claim he collaborated with Julian Assange of Wiki Leaks to release dirt on Clinton. In August of 2015, Roger Stone stepped down from his official role in the Trump campaign.

4. On June 9, 2016 Don Trump Jr. and Ivanka’s husband Jared Kushner met with a Russian spy, Natalai Veselnetskya, at Trump Tower in Manhattan to get dirt on Clinton. At first Donald Trump Jr. lied to Americans about the real purpose of the meeting claiming it was about adoption, before admitting it was to get dirt from the Russians on Clinton.

The Trump / Murdoch Mob? The Donald Publicly Invites Russian Interference

Murdoch’s ex-wife, Wendi Deng Murdoch, waited until July 25, 2016 – nearly four months after the reports broke – to deny that she was dating Vladimir Putin.

On July 27, 2016, two days after Wendi Deng Murdoch’s denial of a relationship with Putin [she was reportedly never seen with him, but seen on Russian Oligarch yacht(s)], Trump publicly invited Russia to hack and release Clinton’s emails, when he stated the following at a nationally televised press conference in Florida.

“I will tell you this: Russia, if you’re listening, I hope you’re able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing. I think you will probably be rewarded mightily by our press.”

Did he mean they will be rewarded by the propaganda press of unrelenting Trump supporter, multi-billionaire Rupert Murdoch, or by the entire American press?

The Trump Family & Campaign Meetings with Russia Continue

5. In July 2016, Carter Page, a financial and oil man, who spent years in Russia and was reportedly sympathetic to Russia, traveled to Moscow to give a speech. He met with a former cabinet member of ex-president of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev. Page initially denied this meeting took place and later his 'memory came back to him'. Page was the Trump Campaign Foreign Policy Advisor from March 21, 2016 until September 2016, when it was disclosed that Page had allegedly met with at least one U.S. sanctioned Russian Oligarch, Igor Sechin of Russian conglomerate Rosneft.

6. On August 14, 2016 Wendi Deng Murdoch, Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner vacationed together in Dubrovnik, Croatia. Likely not coincidently, Russian Oligarch, Rybolovlev’s yacht was reportedly moored there at the same time, and his private plane was reported to have landed there too.

Seven years earlier, following the real estate bubble crash in 2008 / 2009, Russian Oligarch Rybolovlev paid Donald Trump $95 million for a house Trump had purchased for $41 million only four years earlier. Rybolovlev, a member of Putin’s inner circle, eventually demolished the home, leading people to question whether Rybolovlev had financially bailed Trump out during the real estate and stock market crash of 2008. At the time Trump was again allegedly in serious financial straits, following a string of six bankruptcies that began in the 1990's and bled into the 2000's.

Around that same time in 2008, while the American real estate bubble was bursting, Elena Baronoff, a former Russian ‘attaché of cultural affairs’ [spy?], began helping Trump sell property in Sunny Isle, Florida. She sold nearly $100 million of Trump real estate to Russians, reportedly at top dollar [inflated?] prices, which led some pundits to question whether the Trump's were laundering money via real estate sales. In 2007 Ivanka got her start with her father's company, also working on a project in Panama, which reportedly was suspected of laundering what was believed to be Russian and drug cartel money.

Trump sales agent Baronoff reportedly contracted leukemia in 2014 and conveniently died in 2015, right around the time Donald Trump began testing the waters for his presidential candidacy.

7. On September 12, 2016 Ivanka Trump, Wendi Deng Murdoch and Oligarch Abramovich’s wife Dasha Zhukova were photographed attending the U.S. Open together. One report credits Wendi Deng Murdoch with introducing Ivanka Trump to Dasha Zhukova, billionaire Russian Oligarch Abramovich’s wife, and there are reports that the two have been friendly for nearly a decade.

Was the Murdoch Propaganda Machine Colluding with Russia & Trump?

Murdoch's WSJ was reported to have held a story in the fall of 2016 about the Donald and his mob connected past - allegedly for editorial reasons. But if I recall correctly, the WSJ Editor, Paul Gigot, also said something along the lines of holding it to stave off a Clinton victory. I NEED TO VERIFY THIS.

Eleven days prior to the election, on October 28, 2016, the case involving Clinton’s emails was reopened, because some of them were found on Anthony Weiner’s laptop. Rupert Murdoch’s Wall Street Journal had issued related reports about them a couple of months earlier, and Murdoch Fox News regular Rudy Giuliani [now Trump’s lawyer] foreshadowed the timely release of the news - that there were more Clinton emails - on Fox News. Giuliani is reportedly paid over a half million dollars to be a paid contributor on Fox Fake News.

Within days the FBI had sifted through them, informing the public that there wasn’t anything new.

7. Russian Oligarch Rybolovlev was tracked to North Carolina by the Daily Kos, just five days before election day 2016 at the same airport where candidate Donald Trump had landed only 20 minutes earlier to make a campaign stop. Rybolovlev reportedly paid $95 million to Trump for a mansion he demolished, and for which Trump had paid $45 million only four years earlier. It was reported to be worth about $25 - $30 million less at the time.

I found it interesting that Rybolovlev's battery company in America was reported to build batteries in what look like storage containers, and upper management is mostly comprised of ex-Russian government people [agents?]. Rybolovlev recently closed down the company and Russia is reportedly withdrawing money from America, as Mueller probe gets closer to closing in on Trump. I can't help wonder whether the Russians were planning to use these 'batteries in containers' to ship other things - like say weapons technology, people, drugs - in and out of our country?

666. On November 8, 2016, Devilish Donald Trump was elected president. Numerous Oligarchs planned to attend Trump’s Inauguration. Even Putin was rumored to be planning to attend.

Going into the voting booths, most Americans were not fully aware of Trump’s mobster ties dating back into the 20th century, nor even remotely aware of all of the ties Trump has had with what appears Russian-like mobsters over the past 20 to 30 years.

The Inauguration of Benedict Donald - J. Trump

Several Oligarchs showed at Trump's Inauguration [and helped fund it?] including Vekselberg and Maskevitch. Reports said they were expecting great things during the Trump years. Are / were they expecting to convert American democracy into a Putin kleptocracy, Russian style?

PRIME COLLUSION PARTICIPANTS? Ivanka Trump, Wendi Deng Murdoch, Rupert Murdoch & Sean Hannity

Is Wendi Deng Murdoch, the ex-wife of the powerful, multi-billionaire Rupert Murdoch who controls the Fox Fake News propaganda machine above the law? Is the President's daughter, Ivanka Trump Kushner, who appears to be a shill for the Trump Organization above the law?

Is Rupert Murdoch, whose WSJ buried a negative Trump story before election above the law? Is pseudo anchorman Sean Hannity, who Michael Cohen advised on real estate & who famously ordered Trump to fire ALL U.S. Attorneys - which Trump did the next day - immune from questioning? Murdoch's Fox Fake News & Hannity went on to do a very sympathetic, propagandistic interview with Assange in captivity in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London following the election. Both men have, during the Trump presidency, been reported to be in constant contact with Trump [daily to weekly phone calls].

CLICK here to read the rest of our report about whether a financially compromised president who appears a hostage of the Russian mob-like kleptocrats who appear to be possible murderers and thieves of the Russian people's wealth.

ALL Parrll _ What I Found: Unite The Right Rally in D.C.

Media Reality Distortion - How Out of Whack is America's News / Information System?

August 13, 2018 / Government, Media & Politics USA / Washington, D.C. / Gotham Buzz NYC.

Just over a week ago, I made the decision to travel down to Washington, D.C. to cover the Unite The Right Rally scheduled Sunday, August 12th, on the anniversary of the same rally organized by the same group in Charlottesville, Virginia. Charlottesville is located about 100 miles south / mostly west of Washington, D.C.

In the rally a year ago, White Supremacists, Ku Klux Klansmen, neo-Confederates and neo-Nazis participated in the rally and it became violent. One person was killed in the event when an alleged neo-Nazi drove his car through the crowd, and two officers monitoring the event in a helicopter died, when the aircraft crashed [I believe it was an accident]. And somewhere between 19 and 34 people were injured in clashes between the Unite The Right rally participants and Antifa along with other counter protesters.

The D.C. event was scheduled in D.C. because Jason Kessler, the Unite The Right Founder, couldn’t get a permit in Charlottesville for the first year anniversary of the Unite The Right event. After some skirmishing over the permitting with the local Washington, D.C. authorities, Kessler prevailed and was given a permit to hold a march and rally ending in Lafayette Park, just south of the White House.

At one point there were discussions about arranging separate public transit buses for the Unite The Right rally members from their staging area a several miles west of the White House, to the march starting point at Foggy Bottom Metro Station. But the D.C. public transit union resisted, as the majority of their members are African Americans, and the union reportedly opined that they didn’t want to do anything to facilitate the Unite The Right rally.

Meanwhile there were somewhere between a half dozen and dozen counter protester groups that organized to protest the Unite The Right rally. Several of them also sought and received permits.

On Friday Christian and Jewish groups joined forces for an interfaith teach-in and interfaith vigil. This was according to The DCist, which I found to be the best source of information regarding planning / preparing to cover the event on Sunday. The DCist also noted that Black Lives Matter DC in collaboration with several other activist groups held a workshop at an Episcopalian Church.

On Saturday, a Presbyterian Church held a prayer service at Foggy Bottom Station in advance of the rally, where they prayed and chalked some of the sidewalk where the Unite The Right marchers would begin on Sunday.

On Sunday a counter protest, Shut It Down DC, organized a permitted counter protest in Freedom Plaza a few blocks east of Lafayette Park, from where they would march to Lafayette Park beginning at 3 pm. The DCist reported that the Shut It Down DC group included the D.C. Antifascist collective, Hoods4Justice, March for Racial Justice, and others.

Black Lives Matter DC organized to meet a couple of blocks north of Lafayette Park, and would then march south to the park. A group from NYC began their march on August 3rd to D.C. where they planned an event at the MLK monument from 12 noon to 4 pm on Sunday [#AgapeMarch]. And a group, The Real White People’s Rally, led by a local tour guide, Tim Krepp, was scheduled to counter protest at Lafayette Park from 1 to 4 pm.

The DCist also mentioned about a half dozen other counter protest group events, but for the most part those noted above, were the ones most relevant to my planned coverage.

I headed down to D.C. a bit anxious, given the violent skirmishes that occurred at the rally a year ago in Charlottesville, and the following instructions on the unitetherightrally.com website.

Do NOT bring these items:
-Guns
-Pepper spray, clubs, knives or other weapons
-Shields
-Non-approved flags

ALWAYS Be aware of your surroundings. Do not talk to the media.
Do not engage in any fighting.
ALWAYS be a good representative for our cause.

My thoughts were that if you have to provide instructions like these to the people you expect at your rally – there’s a good likelihood that some of the unwanted weapons will be there. I had read that last year people brought guns to the rally in Charlottesville – but I also reasoned that in Washington, D.C. the gun laws are likely far less permissive than in Charlottesville, Virginia. And there were reports that the D.C. police were preparing for the worst.

Anyhow, I arrived at Union Station in Washington, D.C. Sunday afternoon at about 3 pm. It was hot, humid and rain was in the forecast for later in the afternoon. I took the Metro subway from Union Station to the Metro Center stop, which was only a few blocks away from Freedom Plaza. Once on the street, as I began to get my bearings, I asked a young woman if she could tell me in which direction Freedom Plaza was. She was also headed to the counter protest, so we walked over there together. Ironically, her name was Hope.

CLICK here to read the rest of my report about covering the Unite The Right Rally in Washington, D.C. on August 12, 2018. COMING THIS WEEKEND 8/18 - 19/18. The story has become something bigger than I first envisioned. It's in a rough draft which I hope to finish, edit and add photos to this weekend.

GB QB Parrll _ Decisive Victory for Ocasio & Progressives

Democratic Party Insider Joe Crowley Loses in Stunning Defeat

June 27, 2018 / Bronx Neighborhoods / Queens Neighborhoods / Queens Politics / Bronx Politics & Government / News Analysis & Opinion / Queens Buzz NYC.

Congressman Joseph Crowley suffered an astonishing defeat Tuesday, when Alexandria Ocasio - Cortez defeated him in the 14th district NYS primary for U.S. Congress. According to Vox, with 97% of the precincts reporting, Ocasio-Cortez had received 15,897 or 57% of the vote, while Crowley had received 11,761 or 42% of the vote.

Crowley, age 56, inherited his office and the Queens Democratic Party Chairmanship from Thomas Manton in 1999. Crowley has spent the last two decades in Washington, D.C. rising to the top levels of the Democratic party leadership, considered by many to be one of the top contenders to succeed Nancy Pelosi as the House Democratic Leader.

Ocasio-Cortez is a youthful 28 years old, the daughter of a Bronx native and Puerto Rican mother. She graduated from Boston University with a BA in Economics and International Relations. Since then she has worked at a Bronx start up, in the Bernie Sanders presidential campaign of 2016, and as a bartender.

Crowley reportedly had a campaign budget of $1.5 million versus $0.3 million for Ocasio-Cortez, raised via small and online donations.

 

Crowley, Pelosi, Schumer & the Democratic Party of Appeasement

Alexandria ran a spirited campaign, tapping into some of the energy and frustration of an increasingly rigged system, which Donald Trump has been hyper rigging since he took office in 2017.

The Donald tweeted that Joe lost because he opposed President Donald. But as oftentimes seems the case with Trump tweets - the reality is quite the opposite. The electorate that supported Ocasio-Cortez are more likely to view Crowley, Pelosi and Schumer as leaders of a Democratic Party of Appeasement who need to be replaced by people who will vigorously fight for the democratic principles upon which this nation was founded. Pelosi, Schumer and Crowley are seen as wet noodle leaders of the opposition - telling their supporters to hush up about any possibility of impeaching Trump.

Appeasers Say Don't Talk About Trump Impeachment ...

Some pundits believe that Trump is exactly the type of president for which the process of impeachment was included in the U.S. Constitution, as he appears to have colluded with a hostile foreign power to win the election, appears to be in numerous violations of the emoluments clause of the U.S. Constitution and is aligning the U.S. with dictators while undermining democracies around the globe with disruptive breaks in our military and economic alliances.

The party of appeasement references British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain's appeasement of Hitler in 1938 when Chamberlain signed the Munich Agreement. The Munich Agreement basically ceded the German speaking segment of the Sudetenland in Czechoslovakia to Adolph Hitler. Emboldened by Chamberlain's lack of courage to stand up to him, Hitler invaded Poland in 1939 and WWII began.

Bernie Sanders championed the "government by the people for the people" wing of the Democratic party in 2016 and Cynthia Nixon, Jumaane Williams and the NYS Senate IDC challengers are running as the voice of this segment of the electorate in the NYS September 13th primaries.

 

Trump Aligns with Dictators Around the World, While Undermining Democracies

Trump has been aligning the U.S. with leaders of totalitarian states and dictators around the world including Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un of North Korea, President Vladimir Putin of Russia, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud of Saudi Arabia, President Xi Jinping of China and President Rodrigo Duterte of the Philippines.

Trump has been undermining our historical allies - comprised of the real democracies around the world - such as Canada, Britain, France, Germany, Japan, Mexico and most, if not all, of the rest of Europe and most of Latin America.

Left unchecked, this policy of appeasement by the Democratic and Republican parties could, over the long haul, result in the loss of democracy on the planet. Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer and Joseph Crowley are all seen as the appeasers - and last night Crowley as one of them - took a big loss.

 

Crowley's Congressional District Changed from the 7th to the 14th in 2013

In 2013 the congressional district that Joe Crowley had historically run in [7th District] changed. The 7th district covered the northern and western rim of Queens. Since 2013 Crowley has been running in the 14th congressional district which covers the northern rim of Queens and the southeastern part of the Bronx. The changed district resulted in changes to the demographic composition of the electorate by increasing the Hispanic representation in the district. Also, by including the Bronx in the district, it included an area where the electorate had little familiarity with Crowley.

All of the above likely contributed to Crowley's loss. Joseph Crowley was a gracious loser, complimenting Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on her well run and hard fought campaign.

IND _ 1460 _ Is Nixon the One for NYS?

Cynthia Nixon & Jumaane Williams Support Real Rent Reform

June 14, 2018 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC & NYS Politics / Gotham Buzz NYC.

On Thursday afternoon I headed to the NY Public Library at Bryant Park to attend a Rent Reform Rally organized by RealRentReform.org. I had heard that Cynthia Nixon and Jumaane Williams, candidates for NYS Governor and NYS Lieutenant Governor, respectively, were to speak at the event - so given the relevance of rent reform and the growing interest in the challengers to the status quo ... I decided to go.

As I emerged from the subway, I wasn't disappointed. There were a thousand plus protesters gathered on the steps of the central library along Fifth Avenue, just south of 42nd Street, gathered to make their voices heard. What struck me as I surveyed the crowd was the cross sectional nature of the people who had gathered. From the young student activists, to the elderly handing out pamphlets, to people of all colors ranging from black to white.

I shot some photos and talked to some of the organizers and attendees to find out what they had come to say. Essentially they were disappointed with Governor Andrew Cuomo's inaction on strengthening rent regulations - which struck me as comparable to the inaction on housing and the rapid rise in homelessness in NYC as happened under former Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

 

NYS Department of Housing & Community Renewal

NYC Mayor de Blasio helped arrest the rising tide of homelessness in NYC by his actions since taking office in 2014, but there was plenty more to be done, and the Governor and the State of New York hold many of the cards. One of the complaints I heard was that the NYS Department of Housing & Community Renewal [DHCR] budget had been cut since Cuomo took office, and that there were only eleven lawyers to help tenants avoid evictions and unfair landlord and developer actions statewide.

 

Cuomo Decreases DHCR Staff While 'Appearing' to Increase Real Estate Development Incentives

I went online and looked up the budget for the NYS Department of Housing & Community Renewal budget where the agency staff portion of the budget between 2011 and 2017 had been cut from $745 million to $682 million, which is a net reduction of 8.5%. The funds being allocated to the development of housing looked like it had increased substantially [+715%] from $314 million in 2011 & 2012, to $2,245 billion in 2018. But - as I found out - this multi-billion dollar increase is misleading ... so please spend a bit more time and keep on reading.

The 'added billions' goes toward categories entitled State Operations, Aid to Localities and Capital Projects. All of the increase went into a category entitled Capital Projects, which was comprised of two subcategories - Infrastructure Investments and a Housing Program Fund. But the budget increase was saddled with an MOU. The funds were allocated to incent and aid real estate developers to build affordable housing. The net result is that it looks like Governor Andrew Cuomo has cut DHCR agency staff who help residents stay in their homes, while 'appearing' to increase the state money to aid real estate developers to build affordable housing.

Governor Cuomo added $2 billion to the DHCR budget in 2016 referencing a Memo of Understanding [MOU]. While Cuomo claimed to commit $2 billion to building 20,000 new affordable housing units, he saddled the budget increase with a legislative tactic - the MOU. I was told - and the DHCR budget appears to confirm - that most of this money remains unspent and appears to be a revolving budget item that allows Cuomo to claim he's making the investment in affordable housing while not actually going through with it. Real Rent Reformers at the Rally last Thursday alleged that this is a part of a revolving budget game by Governor Cuomo, while the NYS affordable housing shortage continues.

This reminds me of another game allegedly played by Governor Cuomo, which was the use of the now disbanded 'Independent Democratic Caucus' [IDC], which Governor Cuomo is reported to have supported. The IDC was comprised of NYS Senate Democrats who caucused with the Republicans - thus essentially making them Republicans running as Democrats. I did a story earlier outlining this subterfuge which you can view by clicking the link.

 

NYS Losing Affordable Housing Stock?

Another protester complaint was that somewhere between 75,000 and 100,000 affordable homes have been lost during Andrew Cuomo's two terms as Governor and that he has turned a blind eye to landlords and developers cashing in on his inaction. Cuomo's DHCR staff budget cuts would seem to support this allegation, as does Cuomo's inaction on closing loopholes used by developers and landlords to convert rent stabilized apartments to market rate housing stock.

One protester told me that homelessness has risen 36% since Cuomo took office. As of this writing I haven't had time to totally verify this claim - which I hope to do between now and when the primary season ends on election day Thursday, September 13th, 2018 [the election date was moved because Tuesday is 9/11]. But I did find that, at least directionally, these claims are correct.

An example of the growing statewide housing crisis is that in the school year 2012 - 2013, a bit less than halfway through the eight years Andrew Cuomo has been governor, New York had the third highest percentage of homeless students in the U.S. [source: Institute for Children Poverty & Homelessness - aka ICP]. I had thought that homelessness was largely a New York City problem, but as you can see by the map / chart the ICPH published - the problem is statewide.

 

Jumaane Williams & Cynthia Nixon Running for NYS

After speaking to the protesters a number of people rose to speak. Among them was Jumaane Williams, the NYC Councilmember of the 45th district in Brooklyn. He's challenging NYS Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul who he said was party to NYS Governor Cuomo's inaction.

The following is a video primarily of NYS Gubernatorial candidate Cynthia Nixon speaking at the rally. It was the first time I had seen her look like a real contender for the governorship since she announced her intention to run on March 19, 2018. Nixon talked first about rent regulations and one of her own personal experiences, and then she went on to mention other issues that separate her and Jumaane from Cuomo and Hochul.

This is just the beginning of our NYS state elections coverage 2018. I still have a fair amount of research to do to become more familiar with the state's role in so much of what affects us in NYC including affordable housing, the MTA, NYC public education and possibly corruption.

 

Petitions to Help Challengers get on the NYS Ballot

Nixon and Jumaane have about three weeks left to obtain the required signatures to get on the ballot. If you want to help them you can by copying & pasting this link into your browser for Cynthia Nixon for Governor and for Jumaane Williams for Lieutenant Governor

https://cynthiafornewyork.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Cynthia-Jumaane-Petition.pdf

Corrupt Presidency of Donald Trump - Corruption The Ridiculous & Scary Presidency of Benedict Donald If Trump is so Innocent, Why is his Legal Team Spending so Much Effort on Asserting he can Pardon Himself? June 4, 2018 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC. This would be funny, if it wasn't so real. While Trump loudly and continuously proclaims his innocence, both he and his legal team are aggressively claiming that the president is above the law and can self pardon. These actions and concurrent narratives don't seem very innocent to me. Is this a Shakespearean comedy of errors by fools? Do They Think Americans Are Morons? Is Democratic Rule of Law being Ceded to Billionaire Oligarchs? Rudy Giuliani, once a lawyer who prosecuted the mob, seems to have sold out by becoming a lawyer who now represents mob-like characters, including Donald J. Trump and Turkish Iranian businessman Reza Zarrab. Not long after Trump began his career in the real estate business in the 1970's, Trump is believed to have associated with the mob, doing business with them on deals relating to the construction of Trump Tower, and in developing casinos in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Trump reportedly admitted he was friendly with mobsters and I've seen photos of Trump with some. Trump has also sold in the neighborhood of a hundred million dollars or more in real estate to Russians, including an Oligarch, according to Haaretz, an Israeli English language publication. The Oligarchs are considered to be the Russian equivalent to what was the American mob by some. Click here for a brief and likely very incomplete accounting of some of what seem like Trump's nefarious dealings - Donald Trump & the Art of the Steal. Rudy Giuliani was also hired by Reza Zarrab's defense lawyers - not to plead their case as their attorney - but to do something else, possibly akin to what Trump fixer Michael Cohen does. Giuliani was a staunch candidate Trump supporter in 2016, an unofficial Trump security adviser in 2017, and most recently became a member of the Trump legal team. According to an April 3, 2017 Seattle Times report, "[Guiliani and former Attorney General Michael Mukasey] were hired by Zarrab's defense. But oddly, neither is involved in pleading the case in U.S. District Court, leading prosecutors to wonder if the defense is trying to circumvent the regular judicial process by going above prosecutors' heads. ... He [Zarrab] and several others are accused of conspiring to evade U.S. sanctions against Iran, using a network of companies to mask the true nature of transactions and defraud multiple banks. Prosecutors say they processed hundreds of millions of dollars for Iran and claim to have thousands of pages of bank, email and phone records to prove it. Zarrab pleaded not guilty." To make a long story short, Trump subsequently fired Preet Bahara, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York who was prosecuting the Zarrab case [and also prosecuting a couple of cases against a company controlled by Trump propagandist billionaire Rupert Murdoch - see link below]. At the time it was believed that Marc Mukasey, Michael Mukasey's son, would replace Bahara. Instead Trump left the position vacant for about a half year, before a New York judge appointed a temporary replacement. The position may not have been filled to avoid the appearance of what it really may have been ... another example of Trump obstruction of justice. Democracy Destroying Don: Trump Claims He's Above the Law On Saturday, June 2, 2018 the NYT published a story that included the following, "In a brash assertion of presidential power, the 20-page letter -- sent to the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, and obtained by The New York Times -- contends that the president cannot illegally obstruct any aspect of the investigation into Russia's election meddling because the Constitution empowers him to, "if he wished, terminate the inquiry, or even exercise his power to pardon." According to a June 2, 2018 report by The Hill quoting Nick Akerman, the Assistant Watergate Prosecutor, "First of all, the whole idea that he [Trump] can't be charged with obstruction of justice -- the last time that ever happened in this country is when we were ruled by King George ... That's what the whole rule of law is about. The president has to faithfully execute the laws." [Akerman told MSNBC] Axis of Evil: Trump, Giuliani & Rupert Murdoch's Media Rudy Giuliani began doing rounds on the media circuit, most notably, Rupert Murdoch's propaganda machine outlets including Fox News, where he appeared to assert that the president of the United States is above the law. To become better acquainted with what seems to be in it for Rupert Murdoch - who controls Fox News, Wall Street Journal, NY Post, Barron's, Market Watch, WWOR-TV, Fox 5 and Harper Collins Books - in exchange for his unapologetic propagandistic support of Trump - click the link above. Trump Corruption Makes the Clintons Look Like Amateurs? During the 2016 campaign Benedict Donald repeatedly labeled Hillary Clinton as Crooked Hillary. That resonated with the American people because the Clinton's appear to have a history of questionable political maneuvering and the billion dollar Clinton Foundation oftentimes seems self-serving. But in the one and a half years since Trump took office, he's managed to make the Clintons look like small potato amateurs, and you're hearing that from someone who is no fan of the Clintons. Not Serving the Nation but Criminals Serving Themselves? Taxpayers Spend Added $60 Million on Trump's Golf Game & Family Travels. In 2017 the U.S. Secret Service budget had to be increased $60 million to keep apace with the Trump family travels. A good portion of that spending appears to be to provide protection for Trump's 100 days of golf which he did in his first 408 days in office. D.C. Swamp Now a Trump-sized Cess Pool Middle East Wars: American Foreign Policy & Security For Sale? Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law, secured a $30 million investment from an Israeli finance company, Menora Mivtachim shortly after Kushner accompanied Trump on a trip to Israel in May of 2017. In December 2017 the U.S. Embassy in Israel was moved to Jerusalem following receipt of the investment. A March 22, 2018 report by MSNBC states that The Intercept noted that the Saudi Royal Prince said he had Jared Kushner "in his pocket". Kushner, who has national security clearance, is reportedly an avid reader of Trump's daily security briefing. U.S. to Pay For Murdoch Cheney Prince Black Ops? Blackwater / Academi, Erik Prince, Dick Cheney, Rupert Murdoch & Syria - You Know This Can't be Good According to a May 3, 2018 report in the NYT, the U.S. has quietly deployed Special Forces to Yemen, in what appears to be an escalation of help to the Saudi government's involvement in the Yemeni Civil War. The Trump Administration says America is providing refueling, logistics and intel sharing help and the Trump Administration never lies - do they? According to reports in the NYT in 2011 and in 2015 the United Arab Emirates and the Saudis have hired Blackwater [now called Academi] mercenaries and there have been reports of countless civilian casualties in Yemen and torture prisons either in Yemen, or elsewhere in the Middle East, or both. Betsy De Vos' brother, Blackwater billionaire & Founder Erik Prince, is interested in going to the mercernaries-for-hire business again in the Middle East. According to an April 18, 2018 report in the WSJ, "... the Trump administration is seeking to assemble an Arab force to replace the US military contingent in Syria and help stabilise the north-eastern part of the country ... [and that Erik Prince] has been informally contacted by Arab officials about the prospect." It's worth mentioning that Rupert Murdoch, the global billionaire propagandist, went into business with former VP Dick Cheney through Genie Energy which bought energy rights from Israel in 2013 in the illegally-occupied Syrian Golan Heights. In 2007, on Cheney's watch, Erik Prince's Blackwater allegedly murdered dozens of unarmed Iraqi civilians - of which the most notable incident was the Nisour Square Massacre. And Erik Prince is also suspected of attempting to establish a back channel for Trump / Putin in the Seychelles [islands off the coast of Africa] in December of 2016. It seems like the gang is back in town and American's reputation and government taxed money may be used again by these millionaires and billionaires to further enrich themselves. This time it seems they will make themselves even more fabulously rich on the stolen energy rights of the Syrian people, using the American taxpayer Defense budget to pay for it. An effort to defund some of these operations in March / April 2018 was stopped by one of Rupert Murdoch's many puppets, Senate Majority 'Leader' Mitch McConnell [his wife Elaine Chao was previously on Murdoch's 21st Century Fox Board]. Banking Deregulation For Sale? Kushner also secured a half billion dollars in loans during Trump's first year as U.S. President. After multiple meetings at the White House in Spring of 2017, Citibank made a $325 million loan to Kushner. In November 2017 Apollo Global Management made a $184 million loan to Kushner. The loan they made to Kushner was reportedly triple the size of the average property loan in their portfolio. Apollo's slogan is "We take many paths to value." In March 2018, Mouse McConnell, the Republican Senate Majority Leader announced that the Senate had passed a bank deregulation bill that pulls back the bank reforms made after a bank bailout and economic recovery that cost the American taxpayer over $4 TRILLION DOLLARS. In May 2018 Trump and the Republican Congress, led by Paul Ryan, passed a similar banking deregulation bill. Chinese Trade Deals & American Security For Sale? A May 23, 2018 report on Bloomberg states, "Press reports in early May centered on $500 million in expected loans [to a Trump Partnership in Malaysian tycoon developer Hary Tanoesoedibjo] from a Chinese state-owned institution. This was particularly piquant because of Trump's unexpected announcement on May 13, via Twitter, that he was working with Chinese President Xi Jinping to give the Chinese phone maker ZTE Corp., which has been cut off from U.S. suppliers for violating sanctions against trading with Iran and North Korea, "a way to get back into business, fast." That produced accusations that Trump had engaged in a quid pro quo with Xi." CLICK here to continue reading our report about the Ridiculous Presidency of Benedict Donald including the alleged sale of access to Russian Oligarchs, sale of U.S. federal land and mineral rights, potential corruption at Betsy De Vos' Department of Education, 187 former lobbysists working in the swamp-turned-cesspool, Melania's friend's multi-million dollar windfall, taxpayer funded federal government luxury, possibly a Cabinet member's Mile High Club enrollment on a U.S. Air Force jet and the Trump $1.5 trillion robbery of America's children.

GB MB Bx SB fp & add to QB _ NYC Landlord Harassments Continue

NYCCM Helen Rosenthal Hosts Housing Clinic to Inform Renters of Their Rights

May 29, 2018 / Upper West Side Neighborhood / Manhattan Real Estate / Manhattan Neighborhoods / Manhattan Buzz NYC.

On Wednesday, May 25th I went to the Goddard Riverside Community Center on Columbus Avenue at 88th Street to attend a housing clinic designed to inform renters of their rights.

***The following introduction is based on prior research done by me, and was not information provided at the housing clinic. I'll let you know when I segue out of my preamble and into the housing clinic.***

Over the past decade landlords appear to have become increasingly aggressive in trying to wriggle out of NYC and NYS rent stabilization regulations, that govern the rental payments under which about two million New Yorkers live.

It is my understanding that the government contributed land and / or financing to build or repair the buildings governed by NYC / NYS rent stabilization laws in exchange for the pricing rights on rent stabilized units. Many of the new landlords who have acquired rent stablized buildings, may possibly be in violation of approaching their business contract(s) in good faith, as the definition of good faith according to Wikipedia is:

"In contract law, the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing is a general presumption that the parties to a contract will deal with each other honestly, fairly, and in good faith, so as to not destroy the right of the other party or parties to receive the benefits of the contract. It is implied in every contract in order to reinforce the express covenants or promises of the contract. A lawsuit (or a cause of action) based upon the breach of the covenant may arise when one party to the contract attempts to claim the benefit of a technical excuse for breaching the contract, or when he or she uses specific contractual terms in isolation in order to refuse to perform his or her contractual obligations, despite the general circumstances and understandings between the parties. When a court or triar or fact interprets a contract, there is always an "implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing" in every written agreement."

What is at stake, throughout the city, is literally hundreds of millions and more likely billions of dollars in - rental benefits or rental income streams - depending on which side of the struggle you're on. The landlords appear to be trying - using the torturtous side effects of construction including noise, health risk dust [inhalation], privacy loss and apartment functional loss - to wrest away the billions of dollars of rental pricing rights benefits from tenants to be pocketed by the landlords themselves. Given the high dollar value of what's at stake - including people's homes - this seems like attempted grand larceny, especially in cases where landlords are breaking the law to achieve their goals.

This will be continued at a later date. Including the segue into the information provided by the Housing Clinic to inform tenants of their rights.

Tenants' Rights March & Rally - June 14th Midtown at 4.30 pm

P.S. There's a March & Rally scheduled for June 14th, beginning at 4.30 pm, at the NY Public Library at 5th Avenue and 40th Street. They plan to march to Governor Cuomo's office at 3rd Avenue and East 41st Street. For details contact info@realrentreform.org or call 212.979.6958. All but one of the No IDC NY senatorial candidates have been invited to participate, and there's a possibility that NYS gubernatorial candidate Cynthia Nixon will be there too - as this seems to coincide with her reasons for challenging Governor Cuomo.

Things To Do NYC - This Weekend

5 Boro Bike Ride, Bike Expo NY Brooklyn, Frieze Art Fair Randall's Island & Jane's Walks

May 3, 2018 / NYC Things To Do /NYC Neighborhoods / Gotham Buzz NYC.

Weather. The Temperature highs will be in the high 80's Friday, low 70's Saturday, and low 60's on Sunday, while the temperature lows will be around 70 in Friday, dropping to about 60 for the rest of the weekend. There's some rain in the weekend forecast with a 10% chance Friday, 0% Saturday & 70% Sunday. The rain is expected to begin very early Sunday [may slip into late Saturday so beware] and will continue through the day - but it's less than a quarter inch - so I wouldn't cancel anything. Winds will be around 20 mph Friday, descending to 10 mph for the rest of the weekend. The Humidity will be about 50% Friday, 40% Saturday and 70% on Sunday. Click for NYC Weather.

The photo at right shows a man admiring a artwork at the Frieze Art Fair on Randall's Island in 2014. He seems to resemble one of the characters in the picture. The Frieze Art Fair has returned - see details below.

Bronx

Janes Walk along the Grand Concourse begins at 11 am beginning from the Bronx Museum. Click for Bronx things to do.

Brooklyn

Bike Expo New York at Pier 12 in Red Hook on Friday from 10 am - 8 pm & Saturday from 10 am - 6 pm. Click for Brooklyn things to do.

Manhattan

5 Boro Bike Ride takes off in waves from downtown Manhattan on Sunday between 7.30 - 9.20 am streaming through all five boroughs. Click for Manhattan things to do.

Queens

The Frieze Art Fair began on Randall's Island on Wednesday and continues through the weekend beginning 11 am - 7 pm, but closing an hour earlier on Sunday at 6 pm. Click for Queens things to do.

Staten Island

The 5 Boro Bike Ride ends in the Fort Wadsworth & St. George neighborhoods in Staten Island beginning about noon through the afternoon. Click for Staten Island things to do.

5 Boro Bike Ride 2018 - Bike New York 5 Boro Bike Ride Returns Sunday Bike New York Organizes NYC Bike Ride & Bike Expo New York April 30, 2018 / Manhattan Neighborhoods / Bronx Neighborhoods / Queens Neighborhoods / Brooklyn Neighborhoods / Staten Island Neighborhoods / Gotham Buzz NYC. This story includes information about the upcoming 5 Boro Bike Ride on Sunday, as well as the Bike Expo New York which precedes it on Friday & Saturday in Red Hook. As of this report, the temperatures are expected to be in the 60's and the chances of rain appear slim. But bear in mind that the forecast probability of 20% chance of rain last Friday, turned into rain on Saturday evening, so check the weather as we get closer in.   Bike New York 5 Boro Bike Ride Route Since 1977, every first Sunday of May, Bike New York has organized and promoted the 5 Boro Bike Ride. The ride begins in lower Manhattan, sweeps northward across the Harlem River Bridge to the Bronx, circles back across the Third Avenue Bridge to Manhattan, where it begins its southward trek crossing the Queensboro Bridge into Queens, heading south to Brooklyn after a quick stop north to Astoria Park, and then comes down past the Brooklyn Navy Yards, continuing southward along the west side of Brooklyn, to the Verrazano Narrows Bridge where it crosses over to the Fort Wadsworth neighborhood in Staten Island before terminating in the St. George neighborhood at the Staten Island Ferry.   Proceeds from Non-Profit New York Bike Ride go Toward Sustainable Transportation Efforts The now famous bike ride was capped at 32,000 riders I believe sometime in the 1990’s, where it still stands today. One report noted that the 5 Boro Bike ride is one of – if not the largest - non-profit bike rides in the nation. The proceeds go to Bike New York programs which are designed to teach people about sustainable transportation, most notably bicycle riding and bike maintenance and safety. Another report noted that the NYPD had considered [don’t know the outcome] charging the organization $1 million for erecting, maintaining and terminating road closures during the New York 40 mile family-friendly bike ride.   Bike New York Bicyclist Outreach in all Five NYC Boroughs Bike New York has offices in all five NYC boroughs. In 2015 their cyclist safety and bike maintenance programs reached 15,000 New Yorkers. And they are the organizers of the Bike Expo New York being held at Pier 12 in Brooklyn on Friday and Saturday [see details in rest of this story]. CLICK here to read more about the 5 Boro Bike Ride and the New York Expo at Brooklyn Piers this coming weekend.

GB _ Leads into Bx 1489 _ IDC Challengers' Rallies Sunday

Challenging Republicans Posing as NYS Senate Democrats?

April 28, 2018 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics & Government / Gotham Buzz NYC.

I just received an email notifying me of simultaneous rallies which will be held by IDC [Independent Democratic Caucus] member CHALLENGERS within the NYC Metro area. The members of the IDC, who these challengers are rallying against, have been caucusing with the Republicans since 2010 / 2011. By caucusing with the Republicans, the IDC Democrats have provided Republicans with a majority in the NYS Senate. Thus the IDC members appear to be Republicans running as Democrats on the Democratic ticket.

The IDC CHALLENGER rallies are intended to inform the electorate as to how their IDC electeds have been (mis?) representing them - as well as how the challengers would like to represent them - should they be given the chance.

"In an unprecedented show of strength and unity following the release of their joint statement about their agenda, the candidates will set forth their visions for their districts and will enlist those present at the rallies in registering voters, canvassing, and the like in preparation for the Thursday, September 13, 2018 primary election."

"The rallies will explain the need to replace the former IDC members with true blue Democrats whom we can trust not to turn their backs on the people who elected them. The IDC may have rejoined the Democrats for now, but they've been willing to ally themselves with the GOP since 2011 - and they've claimed to return to the Democratic fold before. The damage is done and we will not forget. New York deserves REAL Democrats who stand for progressive values, not Trump Democrats."

SUNDAY Rally Details:

• Blue Wave Rally for Jessica Ramos, April 29, 2 PM, 31-04 Ditmar Blvd., Intersection at 31st Street Astoria, Queens.
• Blue Wave Rally for Alessandra Biaggi, April 29, 2-3 PM, Memorial Grove in Van Cortland Park, Bronx. Memorial Grove is located in Van Cortlandt Park, near West 246 Street between Broadway and the Van Cortlandt Mansion - see map above.
• Blue Wave Rally for Robert Jackson, April 29, 1:30-2:30 PM, at Bennett Park, W 183rd St & Fort Washington Avenue, Manhattan.
• Blue Wave Rally for Rachel May, April 29, 2-3 PM, State Office Building, 301 East Washington Street, Syracuse.
• Blue Wave Rally for Zellnor Myrie, April 29, 2-3 PM, at the Prospect Park subway stop, on Lincoln Avenue between Flatbush and Ocean Avenues, Brooklyn.
• Blue Wave Rally for Jasmine Robinson, April 29, 2-3 PM, at Tappen Park, Staten Island (near the Stapleton SIR stop).
• Blue Wave Rally to Make NY True Blue in SD38, April 29, 2-3, at 20 South Main Street, New City, NY
• Blue Wave Rally to Make NY True Blue in SD21, April 29, 2-3 PM, Bell Boulevard at 73rd Avenue, Oakland Gardens, Queens

Press contacts:

• Rise and Resist: Claire Ullman, 917-679-7120
• True Blue NY: Lisa DellAquila, co-leader, 917-991-0605
• Jackson campaign: Harris Doran, 917-797-6180
• Myrie campaign: Andre Richardson (campaign manager), 201-892-5829, andrerichardson@gmail.com
• Robinson campaign: Jane Nixon Willis, 914-584-2833; improvised3@gmail.com
• Ramos campaign: Monica Klein, 917-565-0715, monica@seneca-strategies.com
• Biaggi campaign: Dominique Shuminova, Deputy Campaign Manager, 917-821-7700
• Avella protest: Judy Kirschner from Rise and Resist, 917-270-2705
• Carlucci protest: John Gromada from Rockland Citizens Action, (845) 323-9896

Scroll down for related story or click here for the full story about the Independent Democratic Caucus & members.

LM _ NY Real Estate Expo

NYC Professionals Discuss Manhattan & NYC Metro Real Estate

April 23, 2018 / NYC Neighborhoods / Manhattan Real Estate NYC / Gotham Buzz NYC.

I attended the 10th annual NY Real Estate Expo at the New York Hilton last week. The event was well attended by hundreds of real estate, development and financial professionals from the NYC and metro area. Anthony Kazazis, Director of the event, had organized a series of panels to discuss key aspects affecting the real estate market ranging from software platforms, to financing, to NYC real estate market assessments.

Generally the mood was upbeat, but not without some concern about the future, given changes in the tax laws, foreign interest in NYC investment, interest rates forecasts and technological challenges facing the industry. But, I thought, that is why everyone is here. To find out what's going on so they can navigate the market changes - rather than be surprised by them.

While I had intended to stay only a short while, I found the topics and panelists too interesting to leave, so I stayed most of the day. I started with a discussion of a new information technology platform called Blockchain, which is intended to serve as an information clearing house, and it includes some artificial intelligence capability. I then found my way into a discussion about New York City versus Silicon Valley with respect to attracting large technology companies like Amazon, Facebook and Google. And I ended my visit after listening in on a discussion by NYC and metro area realtors discuss the residential real estate market in Manhattan and outer boroughs.

Sound like an interesting NYC real estate conference? It was. In the photo above you can see the audience at the well attended panel discussions at the NY Real Estate Expo this year.

I'll have more on this later in the week.

QB1180 _ How We Hear @ Rough Draft Theater Festival

New Play Explores the Changing Nature of our Political Dialogue

April 9, 2018 / Long Island City Neighborhood LIC / LaGuardia Performing Arts Center / Experimental Theater in Queens / Queens Buzz NYC.

Last weekend I had an opportunity to watch one of the new plays performed at the 5th Rough Draft Festival at the LaGuardia Performing Arts Center in LIC. The play was entitled How We Hear by Emily Lyon.

It was an exploratory exposition of what how the American national dialogue has changed over the past century and a half [158 years] and it was as much an experience, as it was a performance.

What Lyon did with the next hour and half of our time was an interesting journey through selected excerpts of our national debate. But even more importantly, Lyon took us on an exploratory journey - including some real time processing - of how new forms of mass media, with the incredible proliferation of information venues and access, impacts our ability to have a honest dialogue about important issues facing our society in a way that everyday Americans are able to process.

Lincoln Douglas Debates @ LaGuardia Performing Arts Center

I arrived shortly before the performance began and found a seat not far from the stage. The performance was given a short introduction by Handan Ozbilgin, the Rough Draft Festival Director and shortly thereafter, one of the seven Lincoln-Douglas debates of 1858 [August 21 – October 15] began. The debates were the first ever between two Senate candidates vying to for a U.S. Senate seat [Illinois]. They became an instant sensation, and became the forerunner of the platform upon which Lincoln would run for president in 1860. It’s worth noting that at the time the Senators were elected by state legislatures – not by a direct tally of state citizens’ votes.

 

How We Hear by Emily Lyon @ Rough Draft Festival

While Triney Sandoval, the Hispanic man who played Douglas, didn’t resemble Stephen Douglas facially, he was an actor and orator of the first degree, and comported himself as one might imagine Douglas. His elocution and diction were very precise, cadenced and reminiscent of an earlier age. And his Hispanic heritage, in what was – over a century and a half ago – an Anglicized age, seemed purposeful in adding an ethnic layer and some complexity, to what was possibly a simpler time.

Sandoval, as Douglas, talked about the Lecompton Constitution, which was one of the hot issues of the time. The Lecompton Constitution which was a competing, pro-slavery, constitution for the state of Kansas induction into the United States, which also explicitly stated that only white males would have the right to vote.

Ironically, Stephen Douglas, a Democrat, helped the Republicans defeat the pro-slavery constitution by aligning with the other northern Democrats who were against it. The southern Democrats were supportive of it.

 

States Rights Vs Human Rights: Early American Hypocrisy or Dialectic?

Sandoval, as Douglas, then went on to accuse Lincoln and the Republican Party of that time of being a northern political party – not a national political party like the Democrats were. Douglas then cited excerpts from speeches made by Lincoln which seemed at odds with each other, where it appeared Lincoln appealed to the anti-slavery sentiment while giving speeches in northern cities like Chicago while appealing to the racial prejudice of the south, while in southern Illinois cities like Charleston [which is about the same latitude as St. Louis, Missouri and Kansas City] by stating that he did not support allowing Black men to become whites equals, citing they weren’t fit for the role of jurors and what not.

Stephen Douglas was a Democrat, but he wasn’t pro-slavery per se. He was for the rights of states to decide for themselves what institutions to create and how they should conduct their business. He noted that all of the Founding Fathers had kept their slaves through the Revolutionary War. And Douglas reminded voters of Lincoln’s speech in 1858 in Springfield, Illinois where he said that “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” And that one day the United States would either be all slave or all free.

CLICK here to read the rest of our report of the LaGuardia Performing Arts Rough Draft Festival performance of How We Hear.

Spring Has Arrived

The Trees are Blooming and Warmer Weather is on its Way

April 17, 2018 / NYC Neighborhoods / Gotham Buzz NYC.

This weeks our deciduous trees have begun budding and flowering. We can see the bright pea green buds and the white tree blossoms popping out everywhere. This unique period of springtime lasts only a week or two, so enjoy the majestic beauty while it lasts.

The photo to your right shows what is a very ordinary view of a back wall of apartment windows in NYC, as it comes alive with nature's beauty. The budding trees add oxygen during the day and carbon during the night to our atmosphere. And provide shelter from the hot sun during the summer and some privacy between neighbors as well.

So enjoy these magical week(s) as nature blossoms and our deciduous trees awake from their wintry slumber.

LS _ The Past Comes Alive: Historic Richmond Town

Historic Richmond Town on Staten Island Preserves a Bit of America's Colonial & 19th Century Past

March 2018 / Historic Richmond Town Neighborhood / Staten Island Culture & History / Gothm Buzz NYC.

Earlier this month I visited Historic Richmond Town on Staten Island. I got off the train at Oakwood Heights and along with a visiting South Korean visitor, ubered the half to one mile inland to visit historic Richmond Town.

We were dropped off in a large parking lot adjacent to the main building, which turned out to be the rear of the site, and walked in. It was less than two hours before closing time and on this cold March day, things were pretty quiet.

In the museum gift shop we Lou Maira who manages it. The visiting South Korean took off on his own, while I struck up a conversation with Lou. He told me that we were in the Court House, which was the County Seat for Staten Island in 1837. The Court House also served as the prison. He told me that this late in the day, on the off season, wasn't really the optimal time to see the place, but he accommodated my unscheduled inquisitiveness anyhow.

 

Historic Richmond Town on Staten Island lies on 100 Acres of Colonial & 19th Century History

Lou told me that there were 15 buildings in Historic Richmond Town. He informed me that tours are given regularly by knowledgeable guides and that they take about an hour and fifteen minutes. The whole town lies on about one hundred acres. At some point in the conversation, one of the tour guides whose name I apparently didn't write down [please send it to me if you read this], joined us, and we continued conversing about Historic Richmond Town. In the photo at right is one of the tour guides of Historic Richmond Town on Staten Island.

Guyon Tavern in Historic Richmond Town

One of the buildings is Guyon Tavern, which may be found about a block and a half away on Richmond Road. The Court House lies at the top of a small hill where Center Street and Court Place meet. Guyon Tavern hosts tavern nights in March and April, where a thirsty 19th century American could and still can get a bottle of ale.

Historic Richmond Town - Things To Do on Staten Island

Historic Richmond Town also hosts other events. In the May / June timeframe there's a program entitled On Court, which I was told is a fairly large festival that includes live entertainment, beer and wine and food. And in September there's a pretty huge festival, it's Historic Richmond Town's signature event, called the County Fair.

The houses in Historic Richmond Town range in dates from the 1600's, 1700's and into the 1800's. The houses built in the 1700's date back to the time of the American Revolutionary War.

I'll add more to this, including more photos, at a later date. But suffice it to say it's worth at least one visit and likely many more. You can find out more about it and their events at http://www.historicrichmondtown.org

LM _ NYC Crime Continues To Drop, Breaking Records

Mayor de Blasio & NYPD Discuss City Safety & Ongoing Improvements

February 7, 2017 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Government / Gotham Buzz NYC.

This just came in on the heels of our coverage of the Public Safety discussion below. Mayor de Blasio and NY Police Commissioner O'Neill spoke in the Bronx regarding ongoing efforts and results in improving safety in the city. The following are some of the crime statistics noted in their meeting taken directly out of a press release sent by them.

 
Chief of Crime Control Strategies Dermot Shea, NYPD: Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Good afternoon, everyone. As you’ve heard, we have begun a strong start to 2017 in terms of overall crime reduction. Strategies that have been put in place to address repeat offenders, illegal gun possession and gangs are having the desired effect. We’re building on the momentum of the last few years.

• So, some of the highlights for crime statistics from this January – overall index crime is down 0.2 percent for the month of January. When you carry it over to this morning, we are now down 2.7 percent in overall index crime in New York City.

• To note – with the overall index crime, January marks the tenth consecutive month of reduced index crime. That’s the momentum we’ve been talking about. Currently, four out of five boroughs in New York City – all but Queens – are down to start the year.

• Homicides – we recorded 20 homicides in January. That’s down two from 22. That 20, as the Mayor alluded to, is the lowest January that we have ever recorded going back a minimum into the 1960s.

• Shooting incidents – down 1.7 percent in January. Last January we hit the modern mark with 59 shooting incidents. We came in with 58 this January.

• Talking about momentum again – nine of the last 13 months we’ve had a reduction in shooting incidents. Nine of the last 13.

• Three months in a row we’ve had a reduction in shooting incidents in New York City. We have now, when you look at New York City as a whole, we now have 24-hour periods where we do not record a shooting incident in New York City. That kind of thinking was impossible in the not too distant past.

• This is the new normal. We want to build on it and we feel that we will build on it but there’s still plenty of work to do.

• Stabbings and slashings for January – down 7.2 percent.

• Robberies – down 7.5 percent. Lowest January robbery number we’ve seen.

• Felony assaults in New York City – down 5.4 percent.

• Burglaries tied the lowest mark set last year.

• Transit crime – down 1.4 percent.

• And housing crime – not to be outdone – down 1.9 percent.

• Clearly, a wide breath of crime across New York City – property and violent crime, down.
   
  But there is, I alluded to, there is still work to do – three categories we saw increases in January.

• Rape was up 8.9 percent.

• Grand larceny, specifically, credit card related skimming and forging of checks – those two drove grand larcenies. And grand larceny was up for the month of January 4.7 percent.

• And lastly, rounding out the crime totals – stolen vehicles which we have seen drop to unprecedented lows saw an increase of ten cars for January. So, that’s 480 versus 470 – a two percent increase.

Commissioner O’Neill: Okay, thanks, Dermot. We’ll take your questions.
 
Question: Do you think it’s possible, really to keep driving crime down further at this point? And how could you achieve that?

O'Neill's response was yes, with some added context.

2Lead Ins to Bx 1489 _ Jeff Klein's IDC: Republicans Running as Dems?

The Independent Democratic Caucus Aligns with Republicans which Enables Republicans to Control the NYS Senate

March 21, 2018 / Bronx Neighborhoods & Bronx News / Bronx Politics / News Analysis & Opinion / Bronx Buzz NYC.

There's an NYS State and Federal election this year. The primaries will be held on Thursday, September 13th; instead of on Tuesday, September 11th, in recognition of 911. And the general election will be held on Tuesday, November 6th.

As in any year, the elections are important, but perhaps made more so this year, by what appears to be the anarchistic destruction and disrespect, for our government institutions and processes, by Republican President Donald Trump.

Trump Republicans: Debt Bomb Deficits Levied on America's Children to Enrich the Richest?

The Donald passed a stimulus tax bill that is expected to increases the deficit by $1.5 trillion over the next ten years, and there are some pundits who put the figure higher. He and the Republicans passed this budget busting stimulus tax bill, while the economy was operating at levels considered above a full employment economy [5% unemployment is considered standard / normal] and at a time when wages were rising over 2%.

Inflation above 2% is considered to be detrimental to economic stability by the Federal Reserve, so stimulating the economy while it's at full employment with rising wages is about the opposite of what makes sense, especially when you consider the funding for it is coming from America's children and most of the benefits for it are going to the wealthiest people on the planet. We posted a report analyzing the Trump Tax Reform Bill slightly before it was finalized, which includes a lot of facts and figures to help provide context to better understand what was in the bill they passed.

The Independent Democratic Caucus Aligns with NYS Senate Republicans & Gives Them Control

In 2010 / 2011 NYS Senator Jeffrey Klein broke away from the Democratic Party and formed the Independent Democratic Caucus which aligns with the Republican Party, thereby giving them control of the NYS Senate. The effect of this is that bills passed by the Democratic controlled NYS Assembly are indefinitely tabled, or in lay man's terms pretty much killed, in the Republican-controlled NYS Senate. The Republicans control the NYS Senate, because eight NYS senators who run as Democrats [IDC Independent Democratic Caucus], either vote with or kill bills with the Republicans.

Democratic NYS Assembly Bills Effectively Killed by IDC

According to the Democratic Senate Conference, the Republican controlled NYS Senate - with the help of their Republicans running as Democrats allies - have effectively killed one education bill providing full day kindergarten funding, three wage / leave bills, four voting rights bills including the allowance of early voting, four immigration bills including one related to the DREAM Act, four housing bills including several pertaining to NYC rent laws that help renters, three criminal justice bills including creation of correctional ombudsman and sealing of marijuana possession records [as marijuana is rapidly being legalized in states across the country], one related to LGBTQ issues, and six regarding healthcare, several of which pertain to women's reproductive rights.

The IDC Deception: Republicans Running as Democrats?

The net effect of this is that Democrats are, in a sense, cheated or tricked out of their majority by what appears to be Republicans running as Democrats. The Independent Democratic Caucus or IDC includes Jeffrey Klein of the Bronx, who founded the IDC, David Valesky of Oneida and Madison Counties in upstate New York, David Carlucci of Rockland and Westchester Counties, Diane Savino of Staten Island / Brooklyn, Tony Avella of Queens, Jose Peralta of Queens, Jesse Hamilton of Brooklyn, and Marisol Alcantera of Washington Heights / Manhattan. Simcha Felder of Brooklyn also runs as a Democrat and caucuses with the Republicans.

• CLICK here to read the rest of our report about the NYS Senator Jeff Klein IDC Independent Democratic Caucus & NOIDCNY - Republicans running as Democrats.

Trump Tax Plan - Super Rich Bilk Billions from America's Babies Trump Tax Plan: A Morally Bankrupt President’s Gift? Are Billionaires Trump & Murdoch Bilking America’s Unborn Babies? Updated 12/26/17 _ December 19, 2017 / New York City Neighborhoods / New York City Business / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC. Like many of you, I have been watching the Trump Tax plan make its way through Congress. While Trump and his cohorts were whipping together the tax package, I was doing research on the possible implications of some of their tax policy proposals. According to an October 20, 2017 PolitiFact report [based on the plan at that time, which has since been modified], "... in the first year of changes, the top 1 percent are projected to draw a little over half the tax savings. The threshold of 80 percent going to the top 1 percent is projected for the tenth year." While directionally this statement is likely to hold [meaning the plan is biased toward the rich], the exact numbers as to how biased the Trump Tax Plan will be for the wealthy - based on the final bill - remains to be calculated. In this report we look at a number of tax cuts included in the final bill including repatriation of overseas profits, reduction of the estate tax, reduction of the corporate tax and the blue vs red state tax increase. We include a review questioning why the Trump Administration is pushing this deficit expanding / debt increasing fiscal stimulus package - when we're in a full employment economy with rising wages. We also include how the Trump Tax Cut Plan has been treated propagandistically by Rupert Murdoch's media outlets, as he appears to personally and corporately benefit immensely from the tax cuts.   But before we begin, we take you on a quick review at some key characteristics and prior dealings of the man behind the plan – Donald J. Trump.   I. Character & The Art of the Deal - Or Steal? In Donald Trump’s book The Art of the Deal, he says, "You can't con people, at least not for long. You can create excitement, you can do wonderful promotion and get all kinds of press, and you can throw in a little hyperbole. But if you don't deliver the goods, people will eventually catch on …” Is the Trump Tax Plan a Tax Boondoggle for Billionaires? Based on recent polls regarding the Trump Tax Plan, it appears the American people are of the opinion that this a very bad deal for them and their children. Perhaps this is why the Donald appears to be rushing through what appears to be one of the greatest tax billionaire boondoggles in modern history, while telling the public that this tax plan isn’t good for him ... or his super rich family and friends.   Always Pay Attention to a Person's Integrity or Lack Thereof To listen to the Donald, you’d think he has always been a champion, if not a living martyr, of the middle and working classes of America. But the facts don’t always square with the Donald’s narratives. And the Donald, seems never to admit blame. That’s why he has continually lashed out at the media who inform the public about him – calling all, but Rupert Murdoch’s vast mass manipulation media [Fox News, Wall Street Journal & NY Post], Fake News. Trump and Murdoch live in the Bizarro World, where so much of what they say appears to be the truth turned upside down. In the graphic at right, I modified Rupert Murdoch's Fox News website front page celebrating the passage of Trump Tax Plan - in which it appears that the bulk of the breaks will go to the super-rich, including the multi-billionaire Murdoch, who is a global propagandist and powerful Trump supporter. I call this Murdoch's propaganda payout and it appears to be HUGE. Law and Crime, a web magazine funded in part by A & E Network, states in a February 16, 2016 report that Trump was named in at least 169 Federal Lawsuits. They went on to say that, “The federal lawsuits that we reviewed date back to 1983 and involve everything from business disputes, antitrust claims and, more recently, accusations that Trump’s campaign statements are discriminatory against minorities. Some of the cases have been resolved, some were dismissed as frivolous, and others were privately settled. He’s been sued by celebrities, personal assistants, prisoners, people in mental hospitals, unions, and wealthy businessmen. Of course, Donald Trump has also done his fair share of suing as well.”   Slippery Donald – A Sales Promoter Who Must be Watched Carefully Watching Trump promote and sell his tax plan to the American public reminded me of a report about how the Donald sold a Palm Beach mansion - Maison de L’Amitie at 515 North Country Road - to Russian Oligarch Dmitry Rybolovlev in 2009. In a July 28, 2016 story in Politico, reporter Jose Lambiet says of the deal,   “This is what he [Trump] does with everything. He puts a little veneer on things and he doubles the price, and people buy it,” … “He’s [Trump] all smoke and mirrors—and that house was the proof.”   Dmitry, the Russian Oligarch, paid $95 million for what Trump had paid only $41 million just four years earlier. Dmitry is now reportedly planning to demolish the mansion. The question is whether the Donald snuck one by the Russian Oligarch, or whether the Donald is in cahoots with the Russian Oligarchs, and this was an indication of such? The graphic / photo at right shows Trump standing in front of the Maison de L'Amitie. In the lower left I added his claim that he wouldn't benefit from the Trump Tax Plan as reported by NBC News on November 29, 2017; while in the lower right is a December 22, 2017 New York Times analysis indicating that the Trump Tax Cuts might enable him to take advantage of $11 million in tax breaks.   II. Trump & The Russian Oligarchs Are These Birds of a Feather Flocking Together? A July 13, 2017 report by the New Republic informs us that, “In 2015, the Taj Mahal [controlled by Donald J. Trump] was fined $10 million—the highest penalty ever levied by the feds against a casino [in years] - and [they] admitted to having “willfully violated” anti-money-laundering regulations.” The report references the book, Red Mafiya, about the rise of the Russian mob in America, by investigative reporter Robert I. Friedman. It appears that the laundered money came from the Russian mob, and further in the story we learn a bit more about what appear to be the Donald’s shadowy business dealings with Russia. “In April 2013, a little more than two years before Trump rode the escalator to the ground floor of Trump Tower to kick off his presidential campaign, police burst into Unit 63A of the high-rise and rounded up 29 suspects in two gambling rings. The operation, which prosecutors called “the world’s largest sports book,” was run out of condos in TrumpTower—including the entire fifty-first floor of the building. In addition, unit 63A—acondo directly below one owned by Trump—served as the headquarters for a “sophisticated money-laundering scheme” that moved an estimated $100 million outof the former Soviet Union, through shell companies in Cyprus, and into investments in the United States. The entire operation, prosecutors say, was working under the protection of Alimzhan Tokhtakhounov, whom the FBI identified as a top Russian vor closely allied with Semion Mogilevich. In a single two-month stretch, according to the federal indictment, the money launderers paid Tokhtakhounov $10 million. Tokhtakhounov, who had been indicted a decade earlier for conspiring to fix the ice-skating competition at the 2002 Winter Olympics, was the only suspect to elude arrest. For the next seven months, the Russian crime boss fell off the radar of Interpol, which had issued a red alert. Then, in November 2013, he suddenly appeared live on international television—sitting in the audience at the Miss Universe pageant in Moscow. Tokhtakhounov was in the VIP section, just a few seats away from the pageant owner, Donald Trump. After the pageant, Trump bragged about all the powerful Russians who had turned out that night, just to see him. “Almost all of the oligarchs were in the room,” he told Real Estate Weekly.”   A Tax Plan for the new American Oligarchs? The U.S. has a Full Employment Economy & Wages are Rising So Why is Trump Promoting Fiscal Stimulus in a Full Employment Economy? Over the past few years the economy has been steadily adding new jobs, and wages have been rising. The unemployment rate is 4.1%, which means the U.S. is operating in a full employment economy. A full employment economy is defined as one where everyone who wants a job, has one, except those who are in transition. Normal transitioning is generally estimated at 5% of those who are employed. These transitioning unemployed workers are those workers who are making the change from school to jobs or vice versa, switching jobs or careers, moving from one locale to another, or making other relevant job or life changes such as illnesses etc..   So given we’re in a full employment economy where wages are rising, why are we incurring over $1 trillion in new debt to give the richest people in the nation / world tax breaks? The new jobs, higher wages argument seems deceptive as it just doesn’t seem to apply here.   Former NYC Mayor Bloomberg Says "This Tax Bill is a Trillion Dollar Blunder" Former Republican Mayor Michael Bloomberg wrote an editorial dated December 15, 2017 on Bloomberg.com entitled "This Tax Bill is a Trillion Dollar Blunder". In the editorial Bloomberg cites his rationale, including an anecdotal poll taken by Trump Economic Adviser Gary Cohn who on November 14, 2017 asked CEO's to raise their hands if they planned any additional hiring. In the video of the event I saw only two hands raised, and the moderator goes on to ask, 'Why weren't more hands raised?'. Go to YouTube.com and type in the search 'gary cohn asks ceos to raise hands' to see the video for yourself. The answer is that the top CEO's are sitting on trillions in cash, so a tax break isn't going to change the investment landscape for them with respect to adding jobs. Bloomberg concluded his editorial with the following statement. "The tax bill is an economically indefensible blunder that will harm our future." It’s also important to note that since the lows following the Great Recession of 2008 – 2009, wages have been going up between two and four percent, as measured on a quarterly basis. CLICK HERE to view the rest of our report on the Trump Tax Plan - Super Rich Bilk Billions from America's Unborn Babies.

Upper East Side French Restaurants – Café D’Alsace

Casual Dining at French Restaurant on the Upper East Side

May 7, 2018 / Upper East Side Neighborhood / Upper East Side Restaurants / Manhattan Buzz NYC.

It was a warm pleasant May afternoon as I strolled into the Café D’Alsace on the Upper East Side. We’d planned to dine elsewhere, but the outdoor seating looked so inviting that we decided for a change of plans.

 

Formerly Elaine's Restaurant on the Upper East Side

The Café D’Alsace is located in what was once a kind of well known Upper East Side restaurant of the 1980’s and 1990’s – Elaines. Café D’Alsace is located at the corner of 88th and Second Avenue, just two blocks from the 86th Street stop off the Q line and the Second Avenue stop off the 86th Street crosstown bus – so it’s a fairly convenient location to meet friends.

Today I was meeting a retired graphic artist, who spends his time managing some of his and his wife’s business interests and their teenage kids’ busy schedules. We took a spot outside to enjoy one of the first really nice days of 2018. The waiter appeared promptly and we began perusing the menu.

 

Cafe D'Alsace French Restaurant on the Upper East Side Manhattan

They included a prix fixe menu, offering three courses for $29. It included their Merguez Shakshuka, which I found to be of great interest. Nonetheless I began surveying the rest of the menu, adding up a combination or two of the other entrees, before I decided to give the Merguez Shakshuka a royal try. I also received the Soup of the Day, which was potato leek, and for dessert I went with the Molten Hazelnut Chocolate Gateaux. My dining companion wasn’t in a very venturesome spirit today, and he settled on the Burger D’Alsace, preceded by the Winter Salad.

The conversation turned to some of the business ventures in which the artist and his wife are involved. It seems things are going reasonably well at the moment, and based on the conversation, it seemed they were expected to continue.

I have the rest of the story written, but I need to convert it to web format and add photos which I'll do Tuesday. Stay tuned.

Brooklyn Farmers Markets & Street Fairs

Also Staten Island Farmers Markets & Street Fairs

March 23, 2019 / Staten Island Famers Markets / Brooklyn Farmers Markets / Brooklyn Street Fairs / Staten Island St Fairs / Gotham Buzz NYC.

A few Staten Island & Brooklyn farmers markets may be open year round, but most of them are seasonal. Some of the seasonal Staten Island & Brooklyn farmers markets usually begin opening in May, with the rest of them opening in June or no later than the first couple of weeks in July. Click here to view the schedules of many of the farmers markets in Brooklyn and here for the farmers markets in Staten Island.

Staten Island & Brooklyn street fairs, on the other hand, are entirely seasonal. Some of them hit the streets as early as April. The number of Staten Island & Brooklyn street fairs rises during the late spring and continues through the dog days of summer [July / August], including into the late part of the Fall. By late October / the end of November the Staten Island & Brooklyn street fairs go on hiatus, with a few returning as early as April. Click here to view a full schedule of the Brooklyn street fairs and also Staten Island street fairs.

Click here for Brooklyn tile stores.

QB1440 _ Update: LaGuardia Airport Development Project

First Phase Moving Along with Second & Third Phases About to Begin

April 24, 2017 / Astoria Neighborhood / Queens Real Estate / Gotham Buzz NYC.

I attended a Community Board One meeting at the Astoria World Manor on Wednesday, April 19th. People representing the LaGuardia Airport development project were scheduled to provide the community with an update regarding several of the multi-billion dollar renovation projects associated with LaGuardia Airport, that are either currently in the works or nearing the end of the planning process.

The presentation was split into three parts: 1) LaGuardia Airport development project construction updates, 2) traffic mitigation efforts and 3) community outreach including job opportunities related to the projects.

Click here to read our report on the LaGuardia Airport development project & expansion, related job opportunities, its possible impact on travel times to the airport and the public hearing details on May 3rd, 2017 in Flushing. We have also included a small bit of history about the airport and the fight over the property and development in Flushing Meadows Corona Park. The graphic at right was created as part of the LaGuardia Airport development project.

MB1386 _ Has The Pulitzer Prize Committee - Like the Corporate Media - Lost its Way?

Updated February 21, 2018 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Government & Politics / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.

The following is an open letter that I sent to the Pultizer Prize Committee on January 25th, 2018 along with a journalistic series I had written in 2017 and sent to them in 2018 entitled Rupert Murdoch and the Rise of the 21st Century Propaganda Press. The series, which you can view by clicking the link, tells the story about how multi-billionaire Rupert Murdoch appears to use his media outlets as propaganda machines in order to promote pols who will grant him favorable tax legislation, favorable executive rulings and favorable industry regulatory legislation.

Murdoch also appears to be able to manipulate the course of governments and public policy. He appears to have done exactly this in the case of the Iraq War, whereby Murdoch appears to have sent three English-speaking democracies to war - not only for oil - but for his cable network TV ratings too. In Britain in 2016, regarding the Brexit referendum, Murdoch appears to have hijacked public policy in his favor - not the nation's - by pushing through a seismic policy change that enables Murdoch to have greater autonomy over how he conducts his multi-national media business - free from any meaningful government interference - and the Brexit referendum vote also gave Murdoch a huge purchase price discount, because of a devalued British currency.

While the Corporate Media obsesses over the Russian Collusion Investigation - they are distracted from putting in the spotlight what appears to be the REAL 2016 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION STORY - which is Rupert Murdoch's election meddling to further empower and enrich himself at the expense of the republic and its institutions.

In Trump's first year, Murdoch was the recipient of numerous tax breaks, and breath-taking deregulatory actions in Murdoch's industry via FCC Rulings and telecommunications legislative changes. All of this has received scant news coverage, as the Pulitzer Prize Award winning corporate media, were too busy covering Donald Trump's Tweet distractions. By giving preferential treatment to Trump's tweets, which the American public is able to directly access on their own, the corporate media has failed the American public by regurgitating and hence amplifying the President's shock jock statements - instead of doing their job of providing the American public with context-based news reports about the important issues of the day.

• CLICK here to read my Opinion / Editorial about the Pulitzer Prize Committee & Journalism Awards.

Queens Library Corruption Scandal: Starring Mortimer Zuckerman's NY Daily News, NYC Comptroller Scott Stringer & Queens President Melinda Katz? Queens Library: Controversy & Takeover Queens Boro President Katz's Controversial Queens Library 'Reform Bill' & NYC Comptroller Scott Stringer's Lawsuit Against the Award Winning Queens Library Resulted in Taxpayers Paying Million$? for What? The graphic at right was created by Sunnyside artist and jazz drummer Paul Maringelli.This section is dedicated to an important and evolving story happening within the borough of Queens regarding a change to the governance of the Queens Public Library system. Government officials with the help of the NY Daily News appeared to wrest away control of the library from the quasi-independent board of trustees set up by Andrew Carnegie in the early 20th century. Andrew Carnegie donated the funds to build public libraries in New York City and throughout the U.S. and the independent board structure was meant to keep the libraries independent of government control. Queens Borough President Melinda Katz and NYC Comptroller Scott Stringer in tandem with the NY Daily News relentlessly attacked the award winning Queens Library President Thomas Galante and the Queens Library Board using allegations and innuendo in what appeared to be a publicity hanging. Queens Borough President Melinda Katz then pushed through legislation changing the Queens Library charter, which wrested control away from the independent board, and gave it to her and the Mayor. Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the bill into law with the near unanimous vote from both NYS legislative bodies. It appears it was a power grab by Katz with Stringer's help, as the allegations did not result in any court actions and the Queens Library subsequently suffered a multi-million dollar lawsuit loss [we heard but could not confirm that it cost $7 million] regarding the Queens Library President's termination [settled out of court - probably so it wouldn't be scrutinized by the public or the press]. Most of the other local press was guilty of following the NY Daily News narrative which appeared to be guided by the then Publisher, billionaire and real estate developer Mortimer Zuckerman. We carved out our own narrative as what the NY Daily News was reporting didn't seem to be supported by what we knew about the Queens Library and its award winning president. Click here to read our coverage of the Queens Library corruption scandal starring NYC Comptroller Scott Stringer, Queens Borough President Melinda Katz & Mortimer Zuckerman's NY Daily News or click here for Queens Public Library program and other announcements at the Queens Public Library website.

Bx1490 _ Bronx St Patrick's Day Parade in Throgs Neck

20th Annual St Patrick's Day Parade in Throgs Neck, Bronx

March 12, 2018 / Throgs Neck Neighborhood / Bronx Neighborhoods / Bronx Parades / Bronx Buzz NYC.

On Sunday I made my way north into a southeastern neighborhood in the Bronx, to attend the 20th annual St Patrick's Day in Throgs Neck. It's worth mentioning that the Throgs Neck neighborhood is also known as Throggs Neck, and apparently while the double g is the correct name and only spelling of the bridge [Throggs Neck Bridge], the Throgs Neck neighborhood uses both spellings.

It was a chilly Sunday morning, following the switch to Daylight Savings Time, so I began the day running a bit behind schedule, made worse by repair work being done along the #7 subway line in Queens.

The photo to your right shows folks milling along East Tremont where there's an Throgs Neck St Patrick's Day Parade after parade party.

 

Public Transit Between Flushing Queens & Throgs Neck Bronx

In the downtown section of the Flushing neighborhood of Queens I had planned to take the 44 SBS bus, but was [wrongly] advised to wait for the Q50. The Q50 came far less frequently, but it did get me there. That said, it's worth noting that the 44 SBS would have been faster, because four of them passed me while I was waiting for the Q50.

 

I departed the bus just off the Hutchison River Parkway at Lafayette Street and started walking east passing St Raymond's Cemetery. St. Raymond's Cemetery is one of the largest cemeteries in the city and associated with St. Raymond's Schools [one for Boys and another for girls] in Parkchester. Click here to see an earlier report we did regarding St. Raymond's Schools in nearby Parkchester, which is only a neighborhood [Schuylerville] away.

 

• CLICK here for the rest of our report including photos of the Bronx St. Patricks Day Parade in Throgs Neck.

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